Discover the best places to purchase a build advice new build desktop motherboard and CPU combo during Black Friday.
Discover the best places to purchase a build advice new build desktop motherboard and CPU combo during Black Friday.
Hello
My current desktop from 2013 is an economy budget build, with a budget CPU and memory setup. It runs slowly and can't be upgraded to Windows 11, so I'm seeking a compatible MB & CPU for a basic Windows 11 system. I'm not aiming for a gaming rig.
I live in the SF Bay Area and after Frys left, I'm uncertain about where to find good deals on these components. I plan to wait until Black Friday and purchase the parts myself (like RAM, graphics card, etc.) then. I'll also need Windows 11.
Where should I look?
Thanks
Track the prices every day or hour from 1 Nov to 30 Jan.
When you feel it’s right and have funds available.
Last year, I purchased all components for a new system in the weeks leading up to BF.
On that specific occasion, I reviewed the prices for those items. They were 1% higher.
Could there be a combo deal?
Check Newegg or Amazon.
I’ll mention Microcenter (not trying to impress) consistently offers the top value for gaming components, especially when you’re near BF.
https://www.microcenter.com/site/content...-save.aspx
Pick a properly matched motherboard and consider adding an extra RAM stick—two is usually preferable to one.
They also occasionally advertise these offers under their Inland brand on Amazon or Newegg. I recently bought a 5800x3d 64gig 4000mhz system and an ASUS Rog Strix B550-F gaming combo from them shortly after quarantine, for around $360 plus tax during BF a few years back. Since then, I’ve received items from friends or family through them.
Regarding the cooler, I’d choose something from Amazon or Newegg (Thermaltake Frozen Infinity or Notte are solid budget options) and an AM5 contact frame for roughly $8, giving you a great setup under $400-500.
Edit: For better performance, consider moving to a 9000 series AMD or a 7000 series Ryzen 7—though they’ll heat up quickly, so a decent cooler is essential. That would be a huge jump from a 2013 build of any kind.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D83LB8PB?asc...=snxs24-20
- 240mm
- 360mm
You can also find reasonably good cases now, and I’ve bought several that offer excellent value for their cost over the years.
Face to face transaction, rather than online?
If face to face, I'd at least look at a place in downtown SF on Howard Street. I think it was called "Central Computers".
https://www.centralcomputer.com/san_francisco-location
Never bought from them, but they've been around for a long time and seem to have competitive prices.
Probably not as cheap as Microcenter in Santa Clara, but you'd have to consider the driving distance to any store. For all I know you are 5 miles from one and 55 miles from the other.
If you are willing to use online sources, I'd certainly consider the standard Amazon and Newegg sources. They could easily be price-competitive after you take into account travel costs to a store and the consequences of DOA or parts failure. I've got a Microcenter about 25 miles from me and it is NOT price competitive after travel costs. While they generally have a decent selection, they don't have nearly the depth of stock found at Newegg or Amazon. 10 or 15 choices of this or that rather than 100 or more.
I agree that waiting for Black Friday is highly speculative. You could probably cobble together an adequate set of parts at a good price, BUT there's a much smaller chance you could get EXACTLY what you want at a good price. A lot of stuff simply won't be discounted.
RAM prices have gone cuckoo in the last 3 or 4 months. Good name brand 2 x 16 DDR 5 kits that were 85 to 100 in July are now 180 to 200. So maybe you should buy sooner rather than later. Again, all speculation.
Thank you for your reply. This could be a playful question, but should I think about using an AM4 motherboard? The program is just a regular home PC for everyday tasks. No gaming required.
Other available options include the microcenter product page for a boxed Intel processor cooler, the MSI B760 P-Wifi DDR4 motherboard with ATX design, and the desktop memory kit CMK32GX4M2E3200C16 in black.
I considered this option but it only has two RAM slots.
You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=MSI+A520M-A+P..._sb_noss_1
And also for the Ryzen 5 4500 or 5500.
The new Santa Clara Microcenter is close to their earlier location near the Intel museum, which was when the Palo Alto Fry store operated. It’s roughly six miles away. Both stores offered in-store bundles, but the Microcenter’s deals often included a motherboard that could be useful, whereas the Fry’s bundles were usually just inexpensive ECS units given away with the processor, leading to many listings on eBay from people trying to resell them.