Current Events > Best place to have someone custom-build PC for cheap?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I need to get a new desktop PC to at least have on hand when this one croaks, and I need to get it done before Trump enters office.
I need to know where I can go to get a custom PC built for cheap off of components I buy myself (base PC, RAM cards, and memory cards. Is there anything else I need? I don't run modern games on my PC, but I do run 3D designing programs, so I probably need a gaming-level PC.) I don't have enough confidence in myself to DIY it. Also, it can't be a long drive from where I live. 30 minutes or less (I live on the eastern side of Portland, OR, and I'm not going to reveal anything more specific than that)
The only place I know of is Bi-Mart, unless they've stopped doing that. Also, I'd prefer a place that will also optimize the new PC for cheap (e.g. remove the bloatware etc.)

Also, for the components I need to buy, just double-checking, but if you want 16 gigs of ram, you need 2 8 gig ram cards, right?

And how much should a 5 terabyte memory card cost? Or can multiple memory cards with smaller amounts of memory be installed?

Also, how backwards-compatible is WIn 10? Will it run software from the 90's? I know DOsBox is pretty good at running 90's games, but I'm talking about applications.

Do it yourself

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

Also, for the components I need to buy, just double-checking, but if you want 16 gigs of ram, you need 2 8 gig ram cards, right?

Depends on the chipset, but yeah most of the time you'll have 4 slots and want to use at least two of them.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

And how much should a 5 terabyte memory card cost? Or can multiple memory cards with smaller amounts of memory be installed?

And do you mean a sold state drive (SSD)? Those don't commonly come in 5TB, but 4TB can be gotten for $250ish give or take depending on the brand. And yes, you can have multiple solid state drives or hard drive disks.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

Also, how backwards-compatible is WIn 10? Will it run software from the 90's? I know DOsBox is pretty good at running 90's games, but I'm talking about applications.

I don't really use ancient software, so I'm not the best for this question. What do you want to run? Often times if there's issues people make fan patches if the program is popular enough.

Bass posted...

Depends on the chipset, but yeah most of the time you'll have 4 slots and want to use at least two of them.

I thought there were only two slots?

And do you mean a sold state drive (SSD)? Those don't commonly come in 5TB, but 4TB can be gotten for $250ish give or take depending on the brand. And yes, you can have multiple solid state drives or hard drive disks.

I don't know, whatever it is that is responsible for how much memory your computer can hold. Do they need to be of equal capacity like the ram chips do? (Now you see why I'm too afraid to do it myself. Life doesn't have a reset button.)
Also, do I need a better graphics or sound card?

I don't really use ancient software, so I'm not the best for this question. What do you want to run? Often times if there's issues people make fan patches if the program is popular enough.

A really old version of Photoshop Elements is the only one I can think of off the top of my head (they removed one of the features in a later version I have from the early or mid 2000's) Maybe some ancient non-DOS games, too.

Trumpo posted...

Do it yourself

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/7/70aaf055.jpg

Can anyone else help me? I'm NOT doing it myself. I'm afraid I'll fuck it up.

Microcentre you buy the parts they will assemble it for like 150 dollars

CADE_FOSTER posted...

Microcentre you buy the parts they will assemble it for like 150 dollars

There are no Microcentres in Oregon or Washington State. I'd have to go all the way down to California for one. Any other places?

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

There are no Microcentres in Oregon or Washington State. I'd have to go all the way down to California for one. Any other places?

You'd have to see if you can find some local small business only national chain that does it is microcenter.

Yeah I would check around with local repair shops if you have any, a long time ago I used to do freelance repair work and builds via Craigslist... I think the more modern route might be asking around on a local PC building Facebook page or social media page

There's a nerd near you that will help you I guarantee it

Despised posted...

Yeah I would check around with local repair shops if you have any, a long time ago I used to do freelance repair work and builds via Craigslist... I think the more modern route might be asking around on a local PC building Facebook page or social media page

There's a nerd near you that will help you I guarantee it

I don't use social media nor do I want to.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

I don't use social media nor do I want to.

Check to see if anyone at a local repair shop is down to help you, if you're not down to do a little searching then it's going to be time to build yourself a PC

I would do it if you were local to me for a build fee, like I said, someone will be down but you gotta find them

Xotic PC and ecollegepc are the most reputable online custom builders but you are gonna pay a premium like holy shit. Expect to pay like $4000 for a PC that costs $2000 if you did it yourself.

Yeah there is also build sites like those, theyll do it and will be a good PC but at sometimes crazy price hikes

If you need someone to help with parts list/compatibility, you can do me

I would rather walk you through doing it yourself long distance for free than you spend 2000 dollars lmao

pcpartpicker and youtube

Tyranthraxus posted...

Xotic PC and ecollegepc are the most reputable online custom builders but you are gonna pay a premium like holy shit. Expect to pay like $4000 for a PC that costs $2000 if you did it yourself.

You'll note that my topic said "for cheap"

Whats your budget?

starforge

Tell you out of the gate, avoid all corporate locations. Geek squad/best buy/circuit city equivs are /awful/ and worse than you trying to do it while drunk watching youtube.

If you don't have a mate you can ask, then you need to do it yourself. Full stop. Not only is it dead easy, but it's even easier than that. Every part only connects to the place it is supposed to; screws are all individually kitted per part (Just the mobo and case fittings.) and PSU cables are labeled these days to tell you where they plug into. Building a PC is like legos, and the hardware side of it is by far the easiest aspect to do.

Is there a reason you want to do this in the most assbackwards possible way instead of just buying a Dell?

BewmHedshot posted...

Is there a reason you want to do this in the most assbackwards possible way instead of just buying a Dell?

Are there Dells that come with 16gig ram, 5 TB of memory, and don't cost 1000+ USD?

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

Are there Dells that come with 16gig ram, 5 TB of memory, and don't cost 1000+ USD?

Ram and hard drive tend to not be the components most people worry about when specking a PC. The CPU and GPU are going the two big factors.

I bought a custom gaming pc like 15 years or so ago from ibuypower. The "just build it yourself" people shit on companies like it because reasons, but I never had a single problem with that computer, my relatives still use it and it's still going strong. I worked out that I spent about $100 more than I would have if I'd bought all the components separately and built it myself.

Maybe 8 years ago when I was in South Korea I got a custom pc from some random online company on gmarket. I've upgraded the gpu twice and put in a nice big SSD about a year ago, but other than that it's still really good for gaming. Never had any problems with it.

bknight posted...

Ram and hard drive tend to not be the components most people worry about when specking a PC. The CPU and GPU are going the two big factors.

Those can be customized?

PCPartPicker and UserBenchmark are two of the best places (websites) to both price and find sales sources for your PC parts.

Both help you find compatible parts that go with one another. I personally am partial to UserBenchmark over PCPartPicker.

https://www.userbenchmark.com/

I was super nervous when I built my first PC back when I was around 15 years old. All you really need for peace of mind is an anti-static wristband. I got one that came with a PC toolkit.

However, the one I have is the same one here:

https://www.amazon.com/anti-static-wristband/s?k=anti+static+wristband

Should come up first on the search, right at the top. The one with the black and the yellow.

Most absolutely detrimental mistakes are easy to avoid with common sense. Don't screw in the motherboard to the chassis too tight- if it resists, stop tightening.

Don't touch the "yellow ends" on Graphics Cards and RAM sticks. Those need to be clean and free of skin oils for a proper connection.

I'd say the only true nerve-wracking part of building a PC is installing a CPU on your own, including properly applying thermal paste. Once you do it a single time, it's not so bad afterwards. Invest in some pre-moistened isopropyl cleaning wipes to clean the CPU surface when necessary, this removes the need for buying coffee filters, whereas in my experience, those just leave behind tiny fibers on your heatsink surfaces because their underside has many small circles from the center going out, that act like a cheese grater on your coffee filters and just rips up the fibers all over it, detrimentally.

Been PC building for over 17 years now since I started. All 5 PCs in my home are built by me, but that's just what is currently in use. All PCs before these in this same house were also built by me. I've come across various issues with building many of them, some easy mistakes to make, others because some PC cases are built weird. It depends, but I always figure it out.

If I lived anywhere near you (I don't, unfortunately), I would help you out. I can always give tips remotely should you need it, though. If you need additional tips, let me know.

Just to follow up here, what you need are:

• Mid-ATX / ATX Motherboard (Micro ATX, Mid-ATX, and ATX represent motherboard size, from smallest to biggest, also affects case compatibility)
• CPU, CPU Cooler (Make sure the CPU and motherboard you plan to get are compatible, LGA socket-wise. Intel's i5-10400F is LGA1200 for example at $94~99)
• DDR4 RAM (Get 16 Gigabytes at least, from Corsair or some other reputable brand)
• Graphics Card (I recommend something like GTX 1660 Ti, or RTX 4060, both from NVIDIA)
• 650 Watt PSU (minimum for adaptability)
• Solid State Drive (This is the "5TB Memory" you're thinking about, 5 terabytes will be expensive, $300+, 2TB is already over $100)
• Mid-ATX PC case (bigger if needed, so ATX size)

That's the basic necessities, not including peripherals or monitors.

If you're wanting to keep costs down, you could forego the GPU altogether and get a Ryzen 7 8700G as your CPU. The integrated graphics on that thing will outperform some discrete GPUs (it'll probably come pretty close to the GTX 1660 Ti the previous poster suggested, maybe even outperform it; I know that mobile chips with the same iGPU come close, and in a desktop, it can draw significantly more power).

You won't be playing 4K ultra high on the 8700G with no discrete GPU, but 1080p 60fps at medium / high settings is very realistic.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

I thought there were only two slots?

It varies, but my last 3 computers all had four slots. You just read the instruction manual to see which slots you use when. It's easy. For example, if you have two sticks of RAM you'll use slot A1 and B1.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

I don't know, whatever it is that is responsible for how much memory your computer can hold. Do they need to be of equal capacity like the ram chips do? (Now you see why I'm too afraid to do it myself. Life doesn't have a reset button.)
Also, do I need a better graphics or sound card?

I'll just say when you say memory that common refers to RAM. I'm assuming you mean storage space of data you can store on a drive. No, you can have any capacity you want. They do not have to match or anything.

A graphics card is nice to have, but depending on what you do on your PC you might not need one. With what you said so far, it sounds like Integrated graphics might be good enough for you, as Trumble suggested. Also, you don't need a sound card. Those aren't really used anymore. The built in audio is good enough for most people, and if you're an audiophile you'll have an external AMP+DAC. You don't have to worry about those devices, though.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

A really old version of Photoshop Elements is the only one I can think of off the top of my head (they removed one of the features in a later version I have from the early or mid 2000's) Maybe some ancient non-DOS games, too.

Your photoshop will probably still work, but you might want to Google your version and see. And you know about DOS Box.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

You'll note that my topic said "for cheap"

That doesn't exist. If you want it cheap you do it yourself.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

Can anyone else help me? I'm NOT doing it myself. I'm afraid I'll fuck it up.

So long as you dont wear socks and shuffle your feet on carpet, its really hard to fuck it up. Well that and putting in the CPU wrong, but there is an arrow for that. It really is just adult legos.

If you have access to Costco there's going to be a pretty solid deal for pre built next week. It's an iBuyPower IIRC.
Intel i9
4070 Super
32GB RAM
2TB SSD
$1299

In my experience, local shops.

If that's not viable, Costco is a decent option for pre builds and you could upgrade.

Edit: if you're within a couple hours of a microcenter that's your best bet if a friend or relative can make the trip on your behalf.

LightHawKnight posted...

So long as you dont wear socks and shuffle your feet on carpet, its really hard to fuck it up. Well that and putting in the CPU wrong, but there is an arrow for that. It really is just adult legos.

That and clumsiness are the things I'm really worried about.

Unknown5uspect posted...

If you have access to Costco there's going to be a pretty solid deal for pre built next week. It's an iBuyPower IIRC.
Intel i9
4070 Super
32GB RAM
2TB SSD
$1299

That's really good the GPU alone is half that price.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

That and clumsiness are the things I'm really worried about.

How do you feel about just installing RAM or the graphics card? They simply slot in and don't require paste or anything like with the CPU.

That and a dollar range would be extremely helpful

Building a PC is not hard at all. There are so many guides on YouTube.

Ultima_Fury posted...

Building a PC is not hard at all. There are so many guides on YouTube.

I've done it but for real the RMA process is a huge pain if there's something wrong with a component, and I'd imagine moreso for someone's first go.

Will_VIIII posted...

How do you feel about just installing RAM or the graphics card? They simply slot in and don't require paste or anything like with the CPU.

That and a dollar range would be extremely helpful

I guess maybe I could. I'd be pretty jittery about it though. I'm not even confident about replacing our doorknob that needs replaced (the stopper locks up now and then and you have to press it in to unjam it) even though I'm pretty sure I could figure out how to do it without so much as a Youtube tutorial.

just build it! it's easy. you plug the things into the ports. you apply diamond grease to the CPU. get a big case and a MODULAR POWER SUPPLY. christ almighty get a modular power supply and don't complain that it's slightly more expensive.

i mean that's it really. legos are more difficult. can you build legos? you can build a pc.

Unknown5uspect posted...

If you have access to Costco there's going to be a pretty solid deal for pre built next week. It's an iBuyPower IIRC.
Intel i9
4070 Super
32GB RAM
2TB SSD
$1299

If the i9 is a 13900K or 14900K, do not get this PC. Those particular i9 chips (as well as their i7 equivalents) are infamous for high failure rates.

I mean really, you should just go AMD in general right now, but if you are gonna go Intel, then (for desktops) don't go higher than an i5 if it's 13th or 14th gen. And if you're wanting something cheap, you probably shouldn't be looking higher than an i5 / Ryzen 5 anyway (except in the specific case of Ryzen 7 8700G with no discrete GPU). Those are still going to be plenty.

Trumble posted...

If the i9 is a 13900K or 14900K, do not get this PC. Those particular i9 chips (as well as their i7 equivalents) are infamous for high failure rates.

I mean really, you should just go AMD in general right now, but if you are gonna go Intel, then (for desktops) don't go higher than an i5 if it's 13th or 14th gen. And if you're wanting something cheap, you probably shouldn't be looking higher than an i5 / Ryzen 5 anyway (except in the specific case of Ryzen 7 8700G with no discrete GPU). Those are still going to be plenty.

Oh yeah fuck that then. I thought it was the other way around and the i7 and i9 were the safer bets.

Robot2600 posted...

just build it! it's easy. you plug the things into the ports. you apply diamond grease to the CPU. get a big case and a MODULAR POWER SUPPLY. christ almighty get a modular power supply and don't complain that it's slightly more expensive.
i mean that's it really. legos are more difficult. can you build legos? you can build a pc.

I don't have to shell out hundreds of bucks for a replacement lego if I break one.

Also, what is a modular power supply?

It's almost impossible to break anything you're installing in a PC by hand.

This entire topic has been the TC having anxiety out the chimney, so you already have your answer -- get a prebuilt. They're not bad these days whatsoever, but you still need to do the homework on hardware terminology to make sure you're not getting ripped off. E.G: A 7800x3d Processor, 32GB DDR5, and a 2060s will be a complete ripoff. You need to be able to scan where they're gipping you if you're going that route.

I've been happy with the iBuyPower computer I got from Costco a couple years ago. That's a potential option over buying the parts yourself and having a company build it for you. If you're lucky there is a local company that can do it, but you'll have to research/call yourself to find out.

A couple of times I bought the parts for the computer and had a friend build it for me. That's not an option now, so I'll just go with the pre-built option. Like you I'm also too stressed at the idea of messing around with parts that cost hundreds of dollars.

C-zom posted...

It's almost impossible to break anything you're installing in a PC by hand.

This entire topic has been the TC having anxiety out the chimney, so you already have your answer -- get a prebuilt. They're not bad these days whatsoever, but you still need to do the homework on hardware terminology to make sure you're not getting ripped off. E.G: A 7800x3d Processor, 32GB DDR5, and a 2060s will be a complete ripoff. You need to be able to scan where they're gipping you if you're going that route.

Not necessarily. If its quite cheap, that wouldnt be a bad deal. A 2060 will do for now though will likely need an upgrade in a few years; a 7800X3D and that RAM are future proof as hell.

Trumble posted...

Not necessarily. If its quite cheap, that wouldnt be a bad deal. A 2060 will do for now though will likely need an upgrade in a few years; a 7800X3D and that RAM are future proof as hell.

My point was to be careful of prebuilts that are top dollar but skimp on one or two parts -- usually the gpu or psu.

Could always buy pre-built - just look for the parts you want to see. Main things are CPU, GPU, and storage size anyway.

Hyena_Of_Ice posted...

Also, what is a modular power supply?

Short story is it doesn't have wires that you don't need.

Tyranthraxus posted...

Short story is it doesn't have wires that you don't need.

Or more accurately, the wires are safely and easily detachable so you can only use the ones you need rather than having a bunch of extras hanging around in your case.