Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#1

Post by alentred » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 4:58 PM UTC

Back in the day everyone was building their own PCs: chose a motherboard, a CPU, RAM, a video card, an audio card, a power supply, verify the compatibility, assemble and pack it into a case. It was flexible, customizable, easy to evolve (unless you change the motherboard), and easy to repair. It was also buggy and a lot of fun. At least the way I remember it.

Today I buy a laptop and everything is pre-assembled. I still get to choose the configuration, but it doesn't feel the same. And voids a lot of the above features. Except that it may still be buggy. Also, the real reason I moved to laptops is because they are, well, mobile. Now, with the remote work I spend my day at the same desk. So I would like to give it a try: assemble my own PC again. (Not a laptop, the Framework Laptop is definitely not what I am looking for.)

Do you have any recommendations for how to do it in 2022? Are there online resources that can bring me up to speed? How to choose the components, make sure they are compatible...

Thank you, and good luck with your New Year's resolutions!

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Edit: I would use the PC for work mostly: coding, compiling, somewhat heavy-ish on the browser; think AWS M-type instances.

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#2

Post by ReptileMan » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:02 PM UTC

Short answer - everything is expensive due to supply chain issues - at every step, videocards are even more expensive due to crypto miners using them. Unless you are price insensitive - wait a bit.

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#3

Post by gigatexal » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:05 PM UTC

I would just buy a pre-made machine with the GPU and CPU and RAM you require.

I build my own and have done for years and years and these days I am considering just buying one from https://www.acom-pc.de

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#4

Post by svennek » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:29 PM UTC

Well, the basics are "evergreens".

The list you put up is close (today it is more like: motherboard, cpu,cpu-cooler, ram, storage, psu, case). No-one really uses separate soundcards anymore (in the very old days, you also had controller cards with serial, parallel, floppy and IDE - sometimes spread out over multiple cards).

Building it yourself is challenge (in the good way) if everything goes well, and a challenge (in the nervewracking way) if not... especially if you don't have a comparable second system to swap stuff with to find the faulty device...

I have personally build most of my home computers from around 1995 to 2018. Then I got lazy and bought a completed system from a small, local integrator. I still assemble barebones once in a while (especially tiny ryzen ones)...

As for your resources question, there are LOTS of youtube channels. I like JayzTwoCents but there are a lot..

But it sounds like you have the history and hence skills..

The main stuff as a sorta primer:

Mainboard -> CPU = socket type (check the MB page if your wanted cpu is compatible)

Mainboard -> RAM = formfactor (DIMM vs SO-DIMM and generation DDR3/DDR4/DDR5, non ecc, non registered unless you are doing something special). You could also look at the mainboards "qualified list" (most other comparable ram works just as well).

Mainboard -> SSD/HD (sata) .. number of ports

Mainboard -> SSD (m.2) .. length of slot most common 22x80 mm (i.e. nvme 2280)

PSU: enough juice.. I usually see what prebuilds advertise with and add 100 (watts)

GPU: what can you find (and pay for) right now

Mainboard -> Case.. is the mainboards formfactor mentioned as compatible with the case

CPU-cooler: Right type for cpu, if case is small also check for height.. Two main types today Air-coolers and AIO (all-in-one water).. A good air-cooler is fine for an non overclocked-into-hell system..

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#5

Post by verdverm » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:31 PM UTC

I faced this same dilemma and decided to not get up to speed and figure it out myself.

I ended up going with https://xidax.com

Get on the phone with them and they will help piece out something in your price range. They are a bit more expensive, but they also provide warranty on all parts beyond the manufacturer's.

Might take a little while to get, they have more business coming in than they can keep up with. This is usually a good sign for a company. Their customer service is the best I e experienced in many years.

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#6

Post by khedoros1 » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:52 PM UTC

In about mid-2020, I used sites like https://buildmypc.net/ and https://pcpartpicker.com/, read through some other people's builds around my price point (I was aiming for Example of a problem you'll have right now: I bought that Sapphire Pulse Rx 580 8GB for the GPU. Spent $190. Used ones of those are selling in the $400-$500 range right now, and $500-$600 new. And that seems about the baseline for most 8GB cards. Looks like some 4GB cards cost less, but still more than I paid for the one a year and a half ago. I think it's possible to jump on a local retailer when they finally get something in stock, but I'm not even positive on that.

CPUs don't seem to be quite as bad, but have had a serious price jump too. I paid $175 for my 3600. Some are still selling used for around that price, and new for more (but still under the prices of the zen 3 CPUs after it).

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#7

Post by breckenedge » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:55 PM UTC

Highly recommend starting with a budget and use cases (VR, ray tracing, 4K, etc) and then using https://www.logicalincrements.com/ to fill in the details.

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#8

Post by yuppie_scum » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 5:59 PM UTC

You can get by pretty well for 2k gaming on a 4-5 year card like a Radeon 480. That is a good way to save budget until gpu costs level off. (They may never actually go down since people and companies are accustomed to spending 4 figures. Hopefully the invisible hand of competition helps)

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#9

Post by brazilian_ds » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 6:13 PM UTC

breckenedge wrote: post #7

Highly recommend starting with a budget and use cases (VR, ray tracing, 4K, etc) and then using https://www.logicalincrements.com/ to fill in the details.

+1 on this. I also recommend you think about the peripherals you'll need to buy to satisfy your requirements, like one or more screens, a good mechanical keyboard and so on.

Re: Ask HN: Build Own PC in 2022?

#10

Post by alentred » Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 6:27 PM UTC

yuppie_scum wrote: post #8

You can get by pretty well for 2k gaming on a 4-5 year card like a Radeon 480. That is a good way to save budget until gpu costs level off. (They may never actually go down since people and companies are accustomed to spending 4 figures. Hopefully the invisible hand of competition helps)

Hm. Thank you, actually an interesting idea. Provided I can find something that is compatible with a modern motherboard (so as to be able to upgrade later), it can be an interesting option to limit the cost at start.