Before and After First Build

Building a PC, especially your first PC, can be a long and tedious process that is potentially very expensive. In fact, it is almost always expensive. Before you put the screw driver into that first screw and open the case, you must consider many things including both price range and what your ultimate purpose for it will be. What you have planned with your PC often determines the price range that it will fall into.


While many people are into extreme gaming and graphics, many people just want the basic functionality that a base model computer offers. No matter where your computer ambitions may lie, here are a few examples of how PC usage style relates to the ultimate price.


You want to consider what your price range is first. If you want an extreme gaming PC, it doesn’t mean your wallet can handle it. The amount of money that you have budgeted is of primary importance. Some typical ranges may include:



  • 150-250 dollars, Minimal; People who are looking to build a PC in this price range typically don’t have high aspirations for their new system or they already have many of the required parts, such as the peripherals and monitor.

  • 251-400 dollars, Moderate; People who are looking to build a PC in this price range typically have higher, or even very reasonable aspirations for a great PC. If you have some peripherals, you could build a very high quality system within this range. If, however, you have few of the requisite devices, you could build a functional PC, but it would be of relative low quality.

  • 401-600 dollars, High; People who are looking to build a PC in this price range typically have very high aspirations for their new PC. You could build a very good system, having few or no requisite devices.

  • 601-800 dollars, Great; People who are looking to build a PC in this price range typically have very high aspirations for a PC and can buy all of the requisite devices. You’d have a great computer when you were done.

  • 801-1100 + dollars, Ideal; People who are looking to build a PC in this price range typically have ‘sky’s the limit’s’ aspirations for their PC. One could buy high-end system parts and peripherals. This would be everyone’s ideal computer, but again not everybody can afford this range.

The Price Range of your PC is dictated by how much money you have budgeted for your new system and the use you want to get out of it. Here are a few examples of the types of things that computer users are looking for. Chances are, by now, you know what you want to use it for. However, take a look at these examples. It might help you fine tune your goals.

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