Is It Just Me, Or Is it a Terrible Time to Build a PC?

[TheOneLasagna]

I am gathering all of the parts for my build on pcpartpicker and I just realized that my current build has only 8 gigs of memory while a pre built Alienware pc has 16 gigs and is $100 cheaper! Seriously thinking of going with a pre built right about now.

[jiyeon]

Don't buy a prebuilt just because it has more RAM, you can always buy more memory later.

 

I have 8GB of RAM right now because memory prices are nuts, but as soon as they drop, only then will I move up to glorious 16GB.  

[dizmo]

Is the rest of the Alienware PC the same? I'd also check and see how well the Alienware PC is cooled.

Honestly though, I've seen that said for years. Seems like it's always a bad time to buy, but if you want a computer, just build it. You won't be saving that much money.

[TheOneLasagna]

3 minutes ago, dizmo said:

Is the rest of the Alienware PC the same? I'd also check and see how well the Alienware PC is cooled.

Honestly though, I've seen that said for years. Seems like it's always a bad time to buy, but if you want a computer, just build it. You won't be saving that much money.

 

4 minutes ago, seoz said:

Don't buy a prebuilt just because it has more RAM, you can always buy more memory later.

 

I have 8GB of RAM right now because memory prices are nuts, but as soon as they drop, only then will I move up to glorious 16GB.  

Ok thanks for the advice.

[williamcll]

At this point I'm just waiting for the local PC mall to go on sale.

[Crunchy Dragon]

13 minutes ago, dizmo said:

Is the rest of the Alienware PC the same? I'd also check and see how well the Alienware PC is cooled.

Honestly though, I've seen that said for years. Seems like it's always a bad time to buy, but if you want a computer, just build it. You won't be saving that much money.

I have a friend that just got an Aurora R7, so naturally I looked it up so I'd be better prepared to help them should they need it, and let me just say this:

It's got an i7-8700 under a 120mm AIO. Normally that's not too bad, but here's the stinger:

There is no intake for the AIO fan. It gets next to no fresh air at all.

[TetraSky]

Sometimes, a pre-built isn't so bad. Like a pre-built used/refurb computer from two generations ago with an i7 in it, is still very much capable today, you'd just need to maybe replace the PSU, add a GPU and suddenly you have yourself a great gaming PC for a fraction of the cost it would've been had you bought new today.

For example, something like this
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=1VK-0017-006V0

[desertcomputer]

It most case there will cheap out on power supply (most important component of a computer) and the case/cooler. I would much prefer to spend on PSU where as most has 10 year warranty and will probably can reused for future builds.

[PokiDaSpitz]

Well the good things about buliding your own pc you can re-use and upgrade any part without voiding your warranty like the alienware. 

AND THE MOTHERBOARD DONT LOOK LIKE A GREEN PLASTIC SH*t.

[Locutus494]

There's a BIG difference between a pre-built PC from the likes of Dell/Alienware, HP, Toshiba, etc., and a pre-built from a custom builder like Digitial Storm or iBuyPower. If you are going to get a pre-built, DON'T go with the big name mainstream like Dell, go with one of the custom builders. Even putting quality aside, the big name companies like Dell are mostly using proprietary non-standard motherboards, PSUs (and cheap PSUs with no room for upgrade), cases, and other parts. If you ever try to upgrade in the future or just want to use the parts in another build, you often won't be able to.

[TheKDub]

1 hour ago, TheOneLasagna said:

I am gathering all of the parts for my build on pcpartpicker and I just realized that my current build has only 8 gigs of memory while a pre built Alienware pc has 16 gigs and is $100 cheaper! Seriously thinking of going with a pre built right about now.

 

RAM isn't the only thing that matters. You also have to keep in mind the CPU and GPU. It's also a good idea to keep an eye on the PSU, Motherboard (though some will use proprietary boards), case, etc... that way you're not getting shitty parts.

[dizmo]

10 minutes ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

I have a friend that just got an Aurora R7, so naturally I looked it up so I'd be better prepared to help them should they need it, and let me just say this:

It's got an i7-8700 under a 120mm AIO. Normally that's not too bad, but here's the stinger:

There is no intake for the AIO fan. It gets next to no fresh air at all.

Haha are you kidding? I mean, I expected lackluster design as their cases are a bit of a mess, but that's horrendous.

[Paul Rudd]

@TheOneLasagna Been gaming on a pre-built PC since December 2016 with ZERO issues. Not one regret at all. Haven't even had to upgrade the korean aftermarket 600W 80+ PSU that came with it either. Still powers my PC flawlessly. I just upgraded my GPU to a GTX 1070 and my stock i5 handles everything I throw at it. Stock cooling keeps everything cool as a cucumber. Currently playing the Division, GTA 5 and Just Cause 3 in 1440p at 80-120 fps. I can get a lot of non-demanding games up to 144 fps easy. Paladins, Warframe and Overwatch being a few of them. I was lucky enough to upgrade to 16GB(from 8GB) of RAM for just $56 back just before it skyrocketed in price. If you do go pre-built, I recommend CyberPowerPC. But buy it from Bestbuy when it goes on a big sale. Got mine a week before Christmas.

[Crunchy Dragon]

1 hour ago, dizmo said:

Haha are you kidding? I mean, I expected lackluster design as their cases are a bit of a mess, but that's horrendous.

I wish I was.

 

One 120mm intake fan in the bottom of the front panel, literally right in front of the GPU's blower fan. Combined with that and the bizarre PSU location, practically nothing could reach the top mounted AIO fan.

Spoiler

Combined with not hearing the best things about quality as a whole, I honestly can't recommend Alienware.

[Locutus494]

Defnintely don't get Alienware. They're not even a company anymore; Alienware is just another product line of Dell. They used to be good (as far as non-custom pre-builts go) before Dell bought them up, but that was over ten years ago.

[Mooshi]

It's easy to save that extra 100 when you use cheap af ram and a power supply that prebuilts usually have.

[Amazonsucks]

6 hours ago, dizmo said:

Is the rest of the Alienware PC the same? I'd also check and see how well the Alienware PC is cooled.

Honestly though, I've seen that said for years. Seems like it's always a bad time to buy, but if you want a computer, just build it. You won't be saving that much money.

Thats because people dont check roadmaps or do wait time calculations before buyimg.

 

If they dont, then they can end up buying at the wrong time. Now is actually a bad time to buy since intel 9th gen soldered cpus are coming soon and new nvidia gpus as well.

 

2016 was a great time to build. Cheap ram, new gpus and cpus. I built the system on my profile in 2016 with 32GB DDR4 and a 1TB SSD pretty cheap. Before that in 2012 i built a Sandy Bridge i5 16GB DDR3 system pretty cheap. 

 

Thing is, i look at roadmaps so when i built my Sandy Bridge system i n 2012 i anticipated buying Skylake about 4 to 5 years from then.

 

Its not just about money when you buy at the wrong time. Its about buying outdated stuff like the entire nvidia 900 series was since it was 28nm or buying a Pascal GPU right now. I see all these build threads with 1080tis in them and im like "dont you realize the new ones are only months away and Pascal is from early 2016?" Its about having to build or upgrade more often.

[dizmo]

19 hours ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

I wish I was.

 

One 120mm intake fan in the bottom of the front panel, literally right in front of the GPU's blower fan. Combined with that and the bizarre PSU location, practically nothing could reach the top mounted AIO fan.

  Reveal hidden contents

Combined with not hearing the best things about quality as a whole, I honestly can't recommend Alienware.

Yeah, I never really recommended them. Overpriced in my eyes. I had an Alienware laptop at one point in time, it was..ok. But I also paid next to nothing for it.

[dizmo]

17 hours ago, Amazonsucks said:

Thats because people dont check roadmaps or do wait time calculations before buyimg.

 

If they dont, then they can end up buying at the wrong time. Now is actually a bad time to buy since intel 9th gen soldered cpus are coming soon and new nvidia gpus as well.

 

2016 was a great time to build. Cheap ram, new gpus and cpus. I built the system on my profile in 2016 with 32GB DDR4 and a 1TB SSD pretty cheap. Before that in 2012 i built a Sandy Bridge i5 16GB DDR3 system pretty cheap. 

 

Thing is, i look at roadmaps so when i built my Sandy Bridge system i n 2012 i anticipated buying Skylake about 4 to 5 years from then.

 

Its not just about money when you buy at the wrong time. Its about buying outdated stuff like the entire nvidia 900 series was since it was 28nm or buying a Pascal GPU right now. I see all these build threads with 1080tis in them and im like "dont you realize the new ones are only months away and Pascal is from early 2016?" Its about having to build or upgrade more often.

I think they mostly say that because of inflated RAM and GPU prices though, not because of new releases.

[Froody129]

The used market is pretty right now. RAM prices suck but everything else is cheaper and better than ever

[Amazonsucks]

3 hours ago, dizmo said:

I think they mostly say that because of inflated RAM and GPU prices though, not because of new releases.

Yeah but ive seen plenty of people say things like "oh man i just bought a 980 and the 1080 is so much better. IF I HAD KNOWN i would have waited".

 

These releases are announced years in advance. Sometimes the details change and you have to adapt but its not like its kept secret when things are due to be released and roughly what their specs will be.

 

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

On ‎2018‎-‎07‎-‎26 at 7:34 PM, TheOneLasagna said:

I am gathering all of the parts for my build on pcpartpicker and I just realized that my current build has only 8 gigs of memory while a pre built Alienware pc has 16 gigs and is $100 cheaper! Seriously thinking of going with a pre built right about now.

Prebuilts are a good platform to build upon (do your research, some aren't so upgrade friendly) for the very budget conscious consumer. But once you start getting into the high end, not so much of a good deal. 

 

On ‎2018‎-‎07‎-‎26 at 11:01 PM, Locutus494 said:

Defnintely don't get Alienware. They're not even a company anymore; Alienware is just another product line of Dell. They used to be good (as far as non-custom pre-builts go) before Dell bought them up, but that was over ten years ago.

The funny thing is that Dell's own in house gaming line has been getting much better, much better than Alienware dare I must say. 

[JoostinOnline]

There are some really good prebuilts out there.  There always have been.

[comicsansms]

On 27/07/2018 at 1:32 PM, MrUnknownEMC said:

It most case there will cheap out on power supply (most important component of a computer) and the case/cooler. I would much prefer to spend on PSU where as most has 10 year warranty and will probably can reused for future builds.

Depends on the brand really. The Chinese/Taiwanese big name computer manufactures will use pretty good PSUs (especially if they use the exact same model in the EU too), but smaller North America (or smaller) boutique builders will use absolute crap, such as iBUYPOWER, CyberPowerPC... will use crap, because they need to stay competitive, as well as the less strict regulations in the US.

[O9B0666]

On 7/27/2018 at 5:24 AM, Amazonsucks said:

 I see all these build threads with 1080tis in them and im like "dont you realize the new ones are only months away and Pascal is from early 2016?" Its about having to build or upgrade more often.

The kicker to me is people still buying two year old low end cards 1030's 1050's and 3gb1060's if your going to buy two year old tech atleast get a high end item. Those two year old low end cards will be junk in two years trying to run any decent game. A least 1070+ will still game in two plus years. Most cpus come with igpus that are comparable to 1030-1050's as is lol