I Do Not Understand Buying Computers

embee · Apr 6, 2021

trappedslider said:
It's so pretty......I joined that sub last year, I'm currently downloading Fallout 4 again so i can really go nutty with modding

Be careful. Modding is addictive.

trappedslider · Apr 6, 2021

embee said:
Be careful. Modding is addictive.

oh I know, before I got my new computer, i'd gone crazy modding both skyrim and Fallout 4. I've been playing Vanilla skyrim on xbox one x and i'd forgotten how ugly everyone is

pming · Apr 6, 2021

Hiya!

Blue said:
I will gladly give you this point. My usual upgrade cycle was to purchase a refurbished machine with the OEM OS license I wanted and a MB that would support a decent amount of memory. Transplant power supply and (upgraded) graphic's card from the last machine. Add memory/SSD as needed. A couple of years later, replace the graphic's card. A couple of years after start the cycle again. But even there I'm in the sub-$200 GPU market for most of my family upgrades, not high end gaming.

Oh! You reminded me...

If you want to avoid "strange problems" with a system that should be working fine... look into your Power Supply! Soooo many (pretty much all) of the "store bought" systems use absolutely HORRIBLE PSU's (Power Supply Unit's). For the uninitiated, PSU's are rated by "metal type and rating". What I mean is they are rated as "[metal] 80+". The "80+" means "this PSU is operating at at least 80% or higher capacity at a constant, at 20/50/100 percent capacity, this is how good/effective it will be". ( here: Power Supply Ratings, Exactly What do They Mean? - WePC | Let's build your dream gaming PC ) The ratings are, from least reliable to most reliable are:

80+ White
80+ Bronze
80+ Silver
80+ Gold
80+ Platinum
80+Titanium

Just about all "store-bought" computers will be using, at BEST, 80+ Silver, with the VAST (well over 90% of them I'd wager) being White or Bronze. The reason a PSU is important is that when your computer is doing a lot of stuff (re: what's it's designed for), it has to distribute power to the system components in a constant flow. The more computing power you need, the more electrical power you need (obviously)...and when a PSU gets too hot/overburdened, it starts to 'flake out'...giving power supply problems to various components like your MB, CPU, RAM, Vid Card, etc. And, as if I have to say it, this will cause "errors", leading to your OS asking for the answer to "3+4" and in stead of getting the correct answer of "7", it gets the answer "Corned beef". ...and crashes.

Bottom Line: Do NOT neglect your PSU! More is always better with PSU, and better is, well, better. So if you can spring that extra $40 for the Gold over the Silver... DO IT! That $40 is better spent on the PSU than a pretty RGB fan.

^_^

Paul L. Ming