Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?
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My desktop computer is...long in the tooth. Not as antiquated as some here, but to the point that I'm probably going to have to upgrade key components to meet my needs here in the next year or so. It's roughly 5-6 years since I've done a major refresh of CPU/GPU/RAM.
current system specs
* Ryzen 5 2600x CPU * 16 GB ram * Redeon RX 580 series, 1GB VRAM <--probably the weakest component * MSI B450 Tomahawk main board * 3x ~24" 1080p monitors. * 2 SSDs (ok, one NVME and one SSD) still in decent shape * Other peripherals still in good shape, including caseIn anticipation of the need, I'm looking to start speccing out a new machine. But since it's been so long, I'm not even sure where to really start shopping. Used to be that NewEgg and TigerDirect were both good--I've heard that they've gone downhill or are no longer in business.
Looking to self-assemble, reusing case/storage/peripherals if possible. Including monitors, although if cheap enough I may upgrade at least one to a higher spec display.
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@Benjamin-Hall said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
NewEgg and TigerDirect were both good--I've heard that they've gone downhill or are no longer in business.
I haven't bought anything from NewEgg for some time but they continue to send me emails.
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NewEgg has been my main source for a long time. They have always had a really big selection of stuff at a good price with free/cheap shipping.
Personally, I've never had any problems with them, but they seem to be going the Amazon route, where things you buy from them may actually come from someone else, and I'm starting to see people complain about problems.
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I usually search for a part on PcPartPicker and pick the vendor that sells it the cheapest. That's typically Amazon or Newegg. Occasionally there will be another big online retailer that sells something with a better price, but it's usually one of those two.
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@Gern_Blaanston said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
NewEgg has been my main source for a long time. They have always had a really big selection of stuff at a good price with free/cheap shipping.
Personally, I've never had any problems with them, but they seem to be going the Amazon route, where things you buy from them may actually come from someone else, and I'm starting to see people complain about problems.
WalMart is now doing that too. In one order a couple of months ago, I purchased half a dozen things that were supposed to be in stock. One of the items I have still not received which was coming from a third party.
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When I built my newest computer I purchased things from NewEgg and Micro Center.
NewEgg has declined from where it was in the 00s. It was purchased by a Chinese company and has expanded into all sorts of other things than computer parts. It does the Marketplace thing now, so if you do look at the site I recommend filtering out things that aren't "sold by NewEgg".
Micro Center runs physical stores, but does shipping as well. The store near me is very nice, with a wide range of computers, parts, peripherals, accessories, and things like electronic components and other hobby items I went to Radio Shack to get as a kid. Their prices are not always the lowest, but I like being able to drive over and look at things.
I've also bought things (usually peripherals) from Amazon, Best Buy, and WalMart. Stay away from the Marketplaces.
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@Benjamin-Hall NewEgg is still really good. That's where I do most of my computer shopping. Yes, my main PC is old, but I've still bought alot of stuff from them over the last several years. I prefer to buy from them directly instead of their marketplace sellers though. Occasionally I'll buy something more consumer class like an external SSD or a mouse through BestBuy. Big box stores hardly ever carry more than one brand of anything anymore, unless it's multiple Chinesium rebadge brands (yeah, yeah, I know all of this stuff comes from China anyway), so it's not often.
I was surprised to learn, just now, that TigerDirect shut down. I had been browsing there up to about a year ago. The problem was that their website was really bad and made it really difficult to find anything. Even if it was something you bought from them before and wanted another and they still had it in stock.
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@boomzilla said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
but they continue to send me emails
Removing your email address comes at a cost.
Sending emails to your spam filter is free.
=> Don't suck at economics!
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@Parody said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
Micro Center runs physical stores, but does shipping as well. The store near me is very nice, with a wide range of computers, parts, peripherals, accessories, and things like electronic components and other hobby items I went to Radio Shack to get as a kid. Their prices are not always the lowest, but I like being able to drive over and look at things.
I'm a big fan of Micro Center, though it helps that there's a store in my city. When I put together a new system earlier this year, the person in the Build-Your-Own-PC department that helped me was really good (I haven't paid as much attention to PC components lately as I was 20 years ago). If you happen to live near one, I highly recommend them. If you're just buying through the web site, probably the only major advantage is that they don't have third-party seller crap.
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@Dragnslcr said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
I'm a big fan of Micro Center, though it helps that there's a store in my city.
Sadly the nearest one to me is about 1000 miles, to southern California.
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@Benjamin-Hall The nearest one to me is a little closer than that but still not exactly convenient. It's about a 3-hour drive, each way.
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@Benjamin-Hall said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
@Dragnslcr said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
I'm a big fan of Micro Center, though it helps that there's a store in my city.
Sadly the nearest one to me is about 1000 miles, to southern California.
That made me think -"wait there was one by me" (1/2 way down CA) <looks> Oh, it's a Walmart Neighborhood Store now. Shows how long it's been since I went over to the Mercado movie theater...
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I end up buying everything on Amazon (even if it's occasionally a few bucks more) just so I can easily look through my order history and see when I last upgraded each thing. Don't follow in my footsteps; I could have done the same thing by just keeping better notes.
I'm a lazy bastard who just uses the Tom's Hardware guides for "gaming pc at X price," because the last time I was actually keeping abreast of hardware developments was in college, cough years ago. Guide for this year.
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@Benjamin-Hall I'll catch flack but I bought my last PC - piece by piece - from Amazon. I'll sometimes use NewEgg because the search there is better but Amazon has issues but getting what I paid for isn't one of them.
I once ordered a ChromeCast and got a OtherCast (not the actual name but some shitty knock off) - long before they blocked better options on Amazon - and easily submitted a complaint and got a refund.
Flame me for not supporting the little guy - which I do on occasion - but I stick to Amazon for mainstream and that includes building my PCs.
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@PotatoEngineer said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
I end up buying everything on Amazon
Yeah same here these days, making sure it's stuff sold by Amazon.
edit: I know I'm not in the US but Amazon is Amazon.
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https://www.bhphotovideo.com/ is also pretty good sometimes.
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@loopback0 said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
Yeah same here these days, making sure it's stuff sold by Amazon.
That doesn't always help - Amazon will comingle third-party stock with their own stock in the warehouses.
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@Unperverted-Vixen said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
@loopback0 said in Where does one shop for computer parts these days (USA)?:
Yeah same here these days, making sure it's stuff sold by Amazon.
That doesn't always help - Amazon will comingle third-party stock with their own stock in the warehouses.
Yeah, but if it's coming from THEIR warehouses at least you're pretty much sure you're gonna get it. It's stuff "purchased" on Amazon but fulfilled by some third party warehouse elsewhere that are the ones you'll have problems with.
