Also, shoutout to Sony for their excellent work in bringing equality to the PC and Console gamer markets. Now everybody can enjoy the joy of being overcharged for gaming hardware! /s
Paul's chair is the "Fractal Design Refine Gaming Chair (Fabric Light)". He did an unboxing about a week ago in his video "My Award-Winning Series is Much More Refined Now".
Watch lots of RU-vid tutorials on how to build a PC then go for it. If you run into something that you can’t figure out then ask Google and look at RU-vid again for the specific problem. The hardest part for me was uploading the new Operating Software and setting up new Hardware such as Ram and M.2 hard drives. Getting the correct Bios onto a new Motherboard can be very scary, so watch tutorial videos before attempting that also. Honestly the best advice for someone wanting to build a PC, would be to buy a Prebuilt first and get to know all about how it works and updating the software etc etc, then build your own after that. That’s what I did and it helped me tremendously.
1 - RU-vid how parts go together / order of the build. 2 - Use PC part picker compatibility list to design parts. 3 - Ask Reddit and they'll fix it for you. 4 - order parts and build PC.
Also people need to know compatibility Ram to x board etc. Updating bios is some much easier now than ever dont need the CPU even in the board or HHD just power getting M.2 up and running isnt a problem either ? just plug them in to the Motherboard and boot install windows on one of them and all good. if you make sure the RAM is supported by the motherboard and you go with 2 sticks most of the issues go away too. I must admit when I've built a new build that first press of the on button still scares me and I am sooooo glad I watch youtube about the new AM5 boards and the Very long first boot other wise I would have been bricking it. the Bad this I think is the lack of info from the likes of intel and AMD at no point did they say make sure you have X bios, and install this chipset drivers for this X3d chip you purchased and set Game bar etc if I hadnt seen it on GN and hardware unboxed it wouldnt have booted. the fact that this was a completely new build except monitor and keyboard/mouse with new case PSU and Graphics card made it more scary
Another reason NOT to build your own, but instead buy your gaming rig pre-built would be warranty and support. If anything goes wrong with it, there is a single point of contact to get help. If you build yourself, you not only have to troubleshoot each aspect of your build but also potentially deal with the warranty on every single component you purchased. Yet another reason to buy a pre-built is if there is a particular component you want but it's not available (sold out, too expensive, etc.), when you buy a pre-build, sometimes you get a good deal on what you really wanted (like a specific GPU). PS: I personally enjoy building my own rigs, but I have also bought pre-built... and this is a worthy subject on the pros and cons. Thanks for the video!
I think pre-built and building your own is a topic unto itself. Many mass-produced pre-built machines (Dell/Alienware) use proprietary items, and any PC should outlive any warranty in all build cases. Handcuff yourself to Alienware and try to replace a power supply? Proprietary connector. System integrators avoid this pitfall, but the term 'prebuilt' is too broad here as you describe, but indeed worth a mention (with the caveats)!
Having a computer store build for you can be a good option, that's what I did way back when I got my first PC. Before starting it's a great idea to watch some videos on how to build a PC, pitfalls and get an idea of what PC you want to have built for you. There's also good tips out there of what to look out for, eg making sure they put both sticks of the matched DDR ram kit in your new PC, not just one (Ram runs faster with both). I recommend making sure the CPU and motherboard match what you need first of all. It tends to be more annoying to upgrade these later than other components. Another thing you can do is buying a Lower end GPU to start with, and then upgrade it later when you can afford to.
@@samsmith7532 at this point only Dell Alienware are the only ones who use proprietary parts. The likes of Lenovo and HP Omen are as standard as a DIY PC or built by some System Integrator like Maingear.
I would say the warranty / support is a double-edged sword for pre-built vs DIY depending on your knowledge. For example, if my RAM stops working, I could diagnose it and send just that part off for repair or replacement etc. Whereas a pre-built would require the whole system to be sent off.
@@Patrick-y4d1z I agree that happens sometimes, but other times perhaps not. I have both DIY and pre-built my house at the moment. One of my pre-built would not accept a BIOS update no matter what method. The tech support for the brand was good in addressing other problems I previously had. For the BIOS problem, believe it or not, the system needed a new motherboard. The same day they sent a tech to my house, replaced the mother board with a brand new one, and had my system up and running. and updated. I know that not all manufacturers have as good as support, but I was very pleased.
I recently built my FIRST pc last week, and the hardest part was screwing in the mobo😂. It's actually not that hard, don't be afraid to build it yourself.
@@Grievous- Cable management was pretty easy for me (maybe I did a shit job idk) Embarrassingly enough it took me well over an hour to screw in the mobo.
I often find the screws for the motherboard to not fit properly which is frustrating. So many of my PC builds have a screw not fully tightened on the mobo.
I'm stuck with ps4 and can't play newer games. Not planning to upgrade to ps5. I will just get stuck in ps5 ecosystem. I'm upgrading my old pc and starting adding parts little by little. The great thing about pc is choice.
(Super) Reason #6 - PC ports are, past graphics, superior overall. Choose your FOV, resolution, framerate cap > maybe dozens of other settings, no paying to play via Internet, aaaand the truest versions of mods.
@@Gyrfalcon-312I guess, but theres a bad or godawful pc port of a popular game like once or more per year too. I mean Starfield for one, and the countless old or retro games that get hastily ported and never fixed (saints row 2 for example). Theres also massive issues with cheating and hacking online compared to console
i managed to build a fairly decent PC based around a 5700X for $644.32 total to replace my geriatric 4th gen i5 rig. though i had no choice but to use ol' reliable (a GTX 1060 6GB from Inno3D) for the GPU since holy fuck, GPU prices. though i'm saving up and looking around in the second hand market. because fuuuuck paying full price for a GPU worth a damn nowadays.
I've been building PCs for 25 years. So things like this happen about once a year. In my basement on my storage shelves: I have an old beige case from the late 90s. A 600-watt power supply. A Ryzen 3400G APU. An RTX 3050 GPU. A spare SSD inside another PC. All I need now is an AM4 motherboard with RAM and I have another PC. Refurbished MB with memory is on order. A new stealth gaming PC is coming up.
@@ajanimandara9048 got mine for $200 ish from microcenter and my buds for around the same in a bundle before they removed custom bundles a few weeks ago
I am absolutely blown away at how they skyrocketed/vanished so fast. Got mine at the end of August from microcenter for 275 after combo stuff, but now you just cant find it in stock here.
@@joeykeilholz925 in America, if you had a microcenter by you, it was cheaper than the lower end ones at a normal store ranging from $200-250 if you got a mobo and ram with it. Not cheaper than the absolute low end ofc but its also sometimes better to save up a bit more. (Depends on your location ofc)
I HIGHLY recommend checking out Build A PC (BAPC) rather than PCMR. PCMR is okay if you basically want to chuckle at some memes, but I've never felt any REAL sense of community there. By contrast, BAPC is chok FULL of people of all skill levels who really just wanna chat and learn from each other and help each other. 😊 I've learned SO much from that sub! When I decided to build my very first PC from "scratch", I was the one asking questions that I felt were dumb... But there was never any judgement or even teasing when something wasn't going right. Instead, people were really helpful and friendly! With their help, I was able to successfully finish the build, and get a POST. 😊 And I've learned SO much more from just checking the sub at least once a day, eventually expanding my knowledge by a staggering amount. I learned so much (not ONLY from the folks there, but from the tech tubers they recommended, like GN and Paul's Hardware, and the wide variety of links to other resources, like the PSU tier list), that I became the person helping other people with their builds, from which parts to choose, to tips for first-time builders, to helping out when they had issues during or after the build. And I used what I'd learned about troubleshooting to help the many posters who came to that sub basically asking for tech support help. I loved paying it forward as often as I could. 😊
I like the reasoning. Good job on the video. Kind of funny that I am starting the build for an ITX case I purchased two years ago but put off building since my old computer was still more than adequate.
PS5 pro + tv will still cost you less than building a whole brand new PC. Plus, you can always buy the cheaper regular PS5 for less...and get a 4k gaming experience. Most 800 euro pc's will NOT output 4k
@@jonathanwessner3456 Lol, the PS5 isn't outputting a 4K gaming experience. It can output 4K, doesn't mean it is. For example, Immortals of Aveum is actually 1280x720p and upscaled to 4K using FSR2.1. That's not 4K. That is what most games on PS5 are doing to some level.
@@Patrick-y4d1z And? BTW, yes, some games do output at native 4k. I mean, a lot of people showing that they have games on PC playing above 60 fps, but, if your monitor doesn't have a high refresh rate, those extra frames don't really matter much. Heck, and the PS5 Pro was PROVEN to be able to do 8k and 4k 120. . Does anyone make the claims you do when their PC uses upscaling via DLSS? no
@@jonathanwessner3456 rofl, yeah, 8k. 4k 120 I have no idea if you are joking or if you are genuine. If you are not joking: Please educate yourself. Or - if you don't want to educate yourself (which is fine of course) -, please stop spreading your absolute nonsense. A console can't give you regular 4k gaming with 60 frames, not even close.
Came here expecting Intel and other company’s product issues to be one of the main reasons. Currently dealing with an RMA for my 13600 K, and feeling more like I’m dealing with a scammer, than a reputable large company. Their slow responses, lack of answering my questions, grammatical errors, insistence on trying to charge me more than retail value for the processor (though will be refunded after “cross ship”), etc. just all seem really shady. Biggest reason not to build… The companies you have to rely on.
A gaming monitor costing $200 is more than enough if you are okay with 1080p gaming - which for your records, is the professional Esports monitor resolution.
Another 2 reason to build a gaming PC. 1) You can play older games, at least via GoG. I still play Sierra Adventure games, from the mid 80s, on my current rig. 2) You don't need to pay an expensive subscription service just to play with friends online.
The great thing about pc's is you can start out with a cheap build and slowly upgrade it piece by piece over time. AM4 has been a great recent platform for this. I started out with a ryzen 2700 & gtx 1060 and now I'm on a 5800x3d & 4090. None of my original parts are in my current pc build but I usually changed 1 part at a time and always had a working pc to use.
I built a gaming PC for it being a PC. It's useful for other things computers do, such as watching this video. 😁I wanted a desktop PC that isn't full of proprietary components that can't be replaced or upgraded easily. It was fun to purchase the components and build the PC.
Honestly, the amount of Games PC has is incredible. I can't see myself going back to consoles. I learned how to build a PC a long time ago from Paul's NewEgg PC build tutorial and if it wasn't for Paul's tutorial, I wouldn't even have been here. To me, Paul is a Hero who got me into PC building and gaming.
Considering the price of the PS5 pro....why not save up for another month or two and build a $1k PC that is way better and does a ton more? Seems stupid to me NOT to build a PC. Especially so when you consider the modular upgrades over time that can be done to a PC that will make it more affordable than buy an entirely new console that barely does anything better.
@@gobbledygook5000 oh yeah . At the rate I’m going though, it’s looking like I’ll spring for the Nvidia 5000 series… I’ve got everything wishlisted but I’m open to tweaking it.
Pretty much all modern GPU's and Motherboards have a HDMI port, meaning there's nothing preventing you from using a PC just like a console. Not sure why it wasn't mentioned here since gaming on a chair in front of a small screen vs couch and a TV is pretty important to many people.
My gaming PC has wifi on the motherboard, and I can hook directly to the TV if I want to. But the PC is in the den, with a 32" monitor. The Mrs. has the big screen in the living room, and I have my desk/monitor/headphones in the den. I can do whatever I want, and I put my coffee in a travel mug, to keep it hot in my travels around the gaming universe.
*has to be plugged into a power outlet Yeah bruh, that's how electronics work ... Maybe add a reason... "Uses electricity"? - Your electricity bill would go up by 10$/month?
I'm the family PC builder...I have no choice but to do this, lol. I love it though and as always you are a beacon in the night for good deals and what to avoid Paul, thank you so much for sharing your wisdom with us poor slobs, it's really appreciated 😊
I built my first PC with major help from Paul's series on Newegg. I've always gotten good advice, and confirmation that I'm not making any stupid mistakes, from using Pcpartpicker for my parts, and referencing Paul's videos. "Stable as a table." That's the way I like my computers.
As someone who has been building PCs since the early 90's..... Physically building a PC is no harder than building a Lego Set......... BUT having a fully working PC at the end needs one or more of the following: 1. Luck 2. Knowledge/experience 3. A knowledgeable friend (who is actually willing to help) 4. Money to throw at someone else to fix it. When browsing a forum or asking for advice remember everyone has 'their way' which might match yours or not. People are different, I game on PC (both Windows & Linux), Mac (both native ARM and via Crossover) and both Xbox & PS5; they each have their advantages and disadvantages. Read the advice, look at other answers and decide what is right for you. Obligatory Star Wars quote: Ben Kenobi, "You must do what you feel is right" ABOVE ALL, HAVE FUN!!!!!
Another reason to buy one (which coincidentally is why I did it)- games are way cheaper than console. Games rarely if ever go on a deep sale on Xbox or PS' whereas on PC- you can occasionally pick up AAA games for 75-90% off. If you're a kid, it's way easier to convince your parents to spend $5 on a game vs. $60.
I've built a few PC's in my time, I'm an old fart, and what is holding me back right now are the GPU price issues. I want the 4090 but the price is outrageous. I may compromise with a 4070 series but I want to get those life like mods for 2077 and other games and the holy grail, GTA6.
I built my first 2 1/2 PCs through advice and build tutorials presented on Paul's Hardware. The 1/2 is that when I bought a custom built PC the first two were cannibalized into my secondary PC for surfing and other media. The custom PC is for Eve Online and Starfield; I'm in deep with both and don't have time for other games at the moment. November I'll be 64, I expect these PCs to be the last I'll need. Gaming in my 70s? Doubtful if I'm still on the right side of the dirt. But future proofed the new PC as much as I could afford and all she needs is a possible RTX 4070 Ti Super and a Zen CPU upgrade. Planning on both in 2025 and they should handle my needs through the end... of my gaming career so to speak.
I built a new rig for the first time in over a decade in June. I got a 7800X3D (of course) for $349. I just checked right now and its either out of stock or $450+. I think I got really lucky with my timing.
#1 DO NOT do it right now, too many new parts coming in the next 6 months, which should impact prices of older generation kit. If you can wait, wait if even you have money for a high end rig.
I spent around 4 grand a year ago building mine from scratch. I've never been happy with a top of the line pre-built. I certainly don't want to game on a tiny ass phone or tablet screen. Forget that. I do own an xbox but some games just suck on a console. I built mine to run MSFS 2020 on three monitors.
Including a chair even as a passing consideration for total price was funny. Consoles start to not be very cheap either if we include the cost of a couch not to mention a 4k TV in the price.
another reason not to build or buy a pre-built pc is if you don't have the patience or want to do your own trouble shooting when something isn't working like it's suppose to.
I've been customizing or building my own since the Commodore 64 Excellent pros and cons vid. Especially when you pointing out something I take for granted daily. I've never thought about a world where I could not play a game I'd played before. Even games that existed pre-Commodore. Thanks for taking the time.
Although it adds to the cost you also have System Integrators that can help you put together a machine from scratch if you don't feel confident in building your own, or you're physically unable to do so.
I opted for a prebuilt from SkyTech Gaming. 7800x3d, 4080 super, 64gb ddr5 5600 RAM. It's the Legacy 4. I paid $2300. The cost to build from new was about the same as the prebuilt, and I decided for the same money I'd rather have it built and warrantied. I'd love to hear your thoughts though.
Sounds like a good option. I built mine myself, but that's because I worked in electronics for years and was very comfortable, especially as this was build number five or six. I did prebuilts for a long time, and then built my own and got immense satisfaction from doing it.
Reason not to build a pc is the upkeep, making sure things are up to date and knowing all the various settings and configurations, how to update systems like the bios, gpu driver etc. Consoles for the most part simplify this process so its more automated but pc is getting better. Some people dont have the time or patience and just want to game now, this is where console is probably best. In PC gaming you should go into it expecting an adventure, it helps to have a good friend who has experience to help guide you.
Paul is the good friend to help guide me, along with Jay and Steve. I've been lucky so far, avoided some crap like the bogus Intel CPU's, and have had few issues. None that I couldn't overcome.
Honestly it'd be worth just to upgrade to am5, micro center have fantastic bundels for Mobo/Ram/Cpu, that'll cost as much as upgrading to top of AM4(5800x3d)
Yes, but there might be TDP limitations to putting a 5000x3d on a 450m motherboard -- you might not be able to unleash the full capabilities of the x3d cpu.
I use the “wealthy benefactor” method when building a new PC. I usually use your recommended setups and add everything to my Amazon wish list for my birthday and Christmas since they are only a month apart. I usually end up only needing to by the GPU myself
After my last AMD build which is delightfully configurable I decided to look at (2) off-lease Intel workstations. While not bleeding edge and not as configurable as an AMD machine I have been thrilled with quality and stability of the work stations. And the prices were less than half of a new gaming build. Just had to drop a better GPU in each one and that was it. One ame with 32GB and the other came with 64GB of ram. Did I mention the rock solid stability? Plus, built in handles so they are easy to move. Anyway, that's an option.
Reason not to build a gaming pc #4: I don't play games. Hence there is a need for a video to help us mere mortals build a system with only the necessary horsepower to run Adobe Lightroom/Photoshop or other graphics packages, video editors and other less demanding software... (I don't need a system that can do 240 frames per second at 4k to work on a single 32megapixal photograph, just lots of ram and storage.)
Built my first PC, an ITX, admittedly using parts I knew would fit.. but, the only video I watched I half skipped through and went "Hmmmmm OK" READ YOUR MOTHERBOARD MANUAL. IT HELPS THE MOST. In my opinion.
I don't game but still prefer you and JTC over LTT and I am Canadian. How about building an inexpensive desktop PC that will run Davinci Resolve Studio?
I've been building my own PCs since the 90s and loving it. I'm now rocking a simple, yet powerful enuff rig to satisfy my needs. Ryzen 1700x, 16 gigs ram and 1080s in their almost useless SLI format. Gotta nice SB soundcard and oodles of a variety of storage. I would LOVE to upgrade, starting with a much better and single GPU but, I"m on Soc Sec. My income is also fragged by the price of land and associated bills for living. The insinuating influence of investor capitalism has totally fuxxored everything around me. I can't afford shinola, much less it's associated and filthy partner. The idea of building a new rig is so beyond what I can do... it's ridickleous. Until there's a serious change in our economic/ social structure, we're all fuxxored... unless we could afford some serious ass college. Things are no longer as they were... time marches on, evolution happens even in social structures. But, over this.. we do have control. OH, and hell no to consoles... they're anathema to me. You can't do a mouse flip turn and have to use aim assist... that's for people who like to sit next to other people and watch the game on a crappy tv... blech. PC.
Sold my gaming PC. Bought an AMD Framework 13 instead. Kept asking myself these questions: How much time do I spend on gaming? Moderate amount Out of all the games I've ENJOYED over the last 10 years, how many required a dedicated GPU? 1 or 2 out of 50 or so. How much enjoyment do I get from increasing the graphical settings of a game? Very little. I enjoy the game just as much on my Steam Deck. My answers will differ from yours but honestly answering these questions helped shift my perspective. Now I have a laptop that's awesome, runs all my games, is upgradable, and is portable
