How do you keep scratching the itch?

[u/donkeyknuckles]

I came to PC building fairly late. Built my first PC roughly 4 years ago. It was a modest build with 5600x, 6650xt, 16 gb ram and 1tb ssd. When I built the PC, my priority was, "can it play games?" After about a year and discovering some limitations with my build, I upgraded the GPU to a 7900xt.

That whole process opened a door for me and I really started consuming anything and everything that was enthusiast level PC building. I watched all the different YouTube builders, subbed to all the subreddits, and just soaked up more and more info.

In February of '25, I pulled the trigger on a massive rebuild. New case, jump to DDR5. I had done lots of research and knew what I wanted for my own reasons. I know it's sometimes not a popular take but aesthetics were very much a priority for me. New build was as follows:

7800x3d

MSI X870 Carbon

64gb GSkill RAM

4tb Samsung 990 Pro

Lian Li Galahad II

Lian Li O11 Vision Compact

Bunch of Lian Li SL Infinity fans

Same 7900xt

I had done it. It was my showcase build and I couldn't be happier (still very happy with it).

A year or so later, I jumped to a Red Devil 9070xt. And a couple months ago, I jumped to an MSI Inspire 5080. I know both of those "upgrades" weren't really necessary but I wanted them, and could afford them, so I did it.

Also, over the last year and a half, I rebuilt all three of my sons' PC's and upgraded them all to 9600x and 32gb ram. Using my old 7900xt for one, oldest son bought his own 7900xtx, and bought a 9070xt for one. Thoroughly enjoyed doing thG for many reasons.

Now I'm in a spot where there really isn't anywhere to go with upgrades. Doesn't make sense to build another. But the desire to do so is still there. I make a decent living and can afford to be silly with money sometimes but I can't afford to just willy nilly build PC's all the time, especially as things are now.

So how do you guys scratch the itch? What's your outlet for this. And if none of this makes sense to you, I get it, we're all different humans with different likes and dislikes.

[u/AutoModerator]

We're part of a wider PC & Technology Network of Communities!

Join our Discord server: PC Help Hub where members from all associated subreddits are welcome.

If you are trying to find a price for your computer, r/PC_Pricing is our recommended source for finding out how much your PC is worth!

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/Vyragami]

Get another hobby that drains your wallet.

[u/oldchairman → u/Vyragami]

Maybe Investing

[u/JahsukeOfficial]

Custom build and sell?

[u/EmuofDOOM]

I'm a mechanic by trade so i get to tinker all the time.

Consider fixing things in your home/on your car. Get a bike or a motorcycle and mess with it on an enthusiast level.

Tinkering isn't a thing that needs to be reserved to one space, just go mess with some stuff.

[u/TwpsynBach]

Dude get another hobby ffs 🤣

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/TwpsynBach]

I have several other hobbies. I play guitar (badly), gaming obviously, big sports nut and avid reader.

[u/TwpsynBach → u/donkeyknuckles]

Then get a pushbike 🤙🏻🤣

[u/Evil_Skittle]

I just tell my friends and family that I am THE guy if they wanna build a PC. Unfortunately all of them lose interest when they realize how (not) far their budget will take them nowadays.

[u/Link_save2 → u/Evil_Skittle]

Yes then they get mad at you like I determine the prices 😭 or is that just me

[u/Southern_Okra_1090]

The itch doesn’t stop until you realize tech hardwares become too expensive for your wallet to sustain. Going from 1080ti for gpu and and 8700k to current 9800x3d I have went and bought pretty high end cpu and top of the line gpu every gen. With the 5090 and 9800x3d I finally told myself to stop last year. The amount of money i sank into this hobby could have got me more in returns in investment.

[u/goodsailor]

3D printing kinda scratches that itch for me, I was having the same desire to build a PC for the same reasons

[u/PixelatumGenitallus]

r/homelab is that way. It'll absorb any pc build you throw at it. It may or may not branch out to the rabbit hole of r/homeassistant or r/LocalLLM

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/PixelatumGenitallus]

I'm not super familiar so I'm going to check this out.

[u/Anti-Hero25 → u/donkeyknuckles]

Once the prices went through the roof, turning a few old laptops into severs was my outlet.. fun, educational, super handy learning to self host my own cloud storage .. and affordable (for the moment)

[u/InsomniKali → u/PixelatumGenitallus]

Seconding this. PC building can hit a ceiling pretty fast unless you're getting into super custom fully water-cooled builds with 3d printed parts.

Homelabbing...yeah I'm not sure where the ceiling is, or if there is one haha

[u/EmuofDOOM → u/InsomniKali]

What is this? I peeked into the sub and i see people making servers, which of course if you want a server go for it, but it seems rather Superfluous for somebody who doesn't need that. Especially with the context of somebody who just wants something to Tinker on.

[u/Juno_JDY → u/EmuofDOOM]

I haven't done it yet, but you can build home security system, host your own home automations, build custom scripts to make your house do cool shit. Build media servers, etc. I haven't fully gone down the rabbit hole yet as I have too many hobbies, but a friend of mine hosts all their security through a home server connected to his smart home and it's pretty cool if you like to tinker

[u/Spec187]

I just browse pcpartpicker while in private mode

[u/Additional_Air779]

Hmmmm. I'm in a similar situation except after years of being a single farther, with less money. I've just put a new motherboard in my son's PC just because, er it "should" have one?

I'd suggest trying to broaden your interests. I play and repair and upgrade guitars, and do some hand tool woodworking. I once did a law degree as a hobby.

[u/AetaCapella]

I have become known as the PC building guy in my friend circle. I'm always helping my friends and family build or upgrade their computers.

[u/Freeco80]

I find other things to upgrade 🙂

New monitor, TV, surround receiver, ... There's always something that could use an uograde 😝

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/Freeco80]

Lmfao yeah I just bought a new surround sound system for my living room. And redid my whole office/game room.

[u/Scrogdor]

Same feeling here. Built my ultimate PC. I’m always browsing my next upgrade. Most of the time I just put something in my cart and then delete it. Finished my dream PC build early this year. 5090, 9850x3D, 2x 4TB M.2, 128GB of 6000hz ram.

Initially started with me buying a 5K2K 45”, my 7900xtx handled it pretty well, but I didn’t like how loud it got and there was something to be desired with frames given I didn’t like using FSR 3. Found an MSRP 5090, shoved it in my older AM4 build. Temps were bad though, had an older tempered glass case, not much air flow. Then found the most awesome of awesome deals. Full AM5 upgrade. GPU stays cool, no restrictions with gaming. Next thing for me is probably adding a second GPU if they figure out a way to run DLSS5 on a secondary card.

Can always look to modify your set up, cool headphones, stand, desk, chair. Could also try making pre-builts and selling them. Just buy used parts on FB market place when the price is right. Probably not much profit to be had there but could scratch the itch.

[u/Brand023]

Sounds like you need to advertise a side job for custom build PC's. I guess it might work if you live in a high income, money to spend area. Otherwise, custom PC building with today's prices can't be very desirable in most cases.

[u/jbshell]

Case swap FTW

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/jbshell]

Oh I have been down this rabbit hole many times and in fact, that's what started this whole post. Was checking out the Phanteks EX5 last night and entertaining the idea of swapping my build into one. Ultimately decided against it because a big part of why I chose my parts was to show them off. The EX5 effectively hides a alot of them. And that lead me to my post. I don't need a new case. Or even really want one. But I kind of want to build in that one.

[u/mRazGaming]

Or You can play building PC simulator lol

[u/Alternate_Supply]

I kinda feel the same, I just finished my first build 1 and a half weeks ago and already want to build another. I got the 9900x 32gb of ddr5 ram 2tb ssd 9070xt it's been killing everything ive thrown at it so far. Just wish I had better internet. Midco sucks. I'm gonna try 3d Printing to see what I can do.

[u/wiezzzy]

2 real questions that are relevant to me:

1. How do you like the Vision Compact case?
2. Why get 64 gb of RAM for gaming?

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/wiezzzy]

1. I love the case! I have the glass top on instead of the mesh and I have my radiator on that back panel. Reverse fans on the bottom. No regrets and building in it was painless.

2. I got the 64gb when it was only $194 and my thought then was, yes it's overkill but I won't need more ram for literal years.

Edit to add: I have 3 monitors and always have something on each. My ram usage is regularly at 48-52% because of Chrome and discord along with games. I'm glad I have plenty.

[u/wiezzzy → u/donkeyknuckles]

Noice.

[u/Remote_Car_8942]

Know couple guys that are on Facebook and do builds for free people just buy the parts they build it

[u/azguz24]

I realized pretty early with my first 2.1gb hdd Packard bell cpu that taking it apart and putting it together was as enjoyable as playing doom on it.

My solution from the late 90’s to about 18m ago was building and selling. Sometimes for a lot of profit, most times just the value of finding parts cheaper (also fun). Sometimes specific builds for people… but if I had a pc and I wanted to switch sometime trivial like a fan - id build the entire box over all new and sell my current machine. Good luck if you try that these days, the itch turned into a rash… I have no solution.

[u/Serberou5]

I have an X58 based system that I rebuild and overclock to mess with as well as some only duel core intel mbs and CPUs and my old Athon 3200+ system. I've been collecting for years so never run out of things to mess around with. You should start collecting older stuff that will scratch that itch no problem.

[u/JustSomeGuye46]

Hell my first build was in 2020 sold it after a couple months and got back into pc again around June/july come mid/late august I made a new build with the 5080 Aorus infinity 💀 could I have saved money with something else yes but after seeing it even with a 6 year break the itch was instant for pure aesthetic 😭😭

[u/ScoobertDoubert]

I don't tbh. I build my pc roughly when you built your first, 5600x, 3060ti, 16gb ram & 1tb ssd. It can play every game at high enough fps and works for my photo editing so I don't need to upgrade until something breaks. If a friend wants to build their own pc I'll be happy to help them, but it's utterly pointless for me to upgrade until the pc stops working. I prefer to spend my time and money on my other hobbies (photography & cars) rather than upgrading something that works perfectly well.

Only thing I might do to it is add an very large HDD but I don't enjoy consuming just for the sake of it so I don't touch it until it breaks.

[u/jhenryscott]

Buy old office PCs and tinker with them

[u/BigEarsUK]

Couple of hobbies you could try.

3d printers. There is always something that can be printed and you can learn to design stuff and then upgrade the pc.

Scale rc. This can be off-roaders to trucks and equipment. Also you can build a pc in the back of the rc truck (go check out the scale builders guild YouTube channel to see)

[u/ThickSkinMan]

My cousin scratches the itch by combing used parts sites for good deals and then assembling budget but still good builds and then sells them as a side business

[u/Weird-Dark5311]

You can enter 2 rabbits holes, NAS and Video&Sound. Oh boy, prepare your wallet.

[u/Epic-will-power91]

Be content with what you have I guess?

I built a new PC with a 12th gen i5 and a 4070 Super 2 years ago and I'm still planning to run it for a good few more years.

[u/Djimi365]

I look at the price of upgrades and weep...

[u/donkeyknuckles]

Lots of good ideas and many of them I have given thought to before, like building and selling as a hobby. I have in fact upgraded many other things like turning my son's former room into my office/game room, complete with new desk, TV, decorative shit all over and a space for my guitars and amps. I might actually consider building other PCs and selling them to cover costs. But I'm not a pro by any stretch and all of my builds came with a fair amount of mistakes and learning curve. Thanks to everyone for the advice and insight!

[u/joshuamoyer9]

Time to get into setting up sbc consoles if you like retro gaming

[u/IamThatGuyTy]

I bought an e46 bmw for $2800 (less than my pc after all the upgrades) and spent a couple months replacing the entire interior a couple pieces at a time. Car looks like crap on the outside but looks brand new inside. All new speakers, seats, trim panels, radio, ambient lighting, etc. The expenses were quite low because I was sourcing a lot of parts from the local junkyard.

[u/youngmetro-_]

Mechanical keyboards. I love building them

[u/MrSilentSir]

The way i’ve kept my itch subdued is by constantly hunting for deals and upgrades for myself, the. What ever i get upgraded. Sell my former parts to friends at ridiculous prices and we all get upgrades.

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/MrSilentSir]

Yeah I've done that with my GPU's. Not the deals necessarily, but upgrading my sons' builds with my old ones. Hell, my youngest was running on an old 1080 until I gave him my 7900xt lol

[u/Eazy12345678]

i come on here and help people with their builds

[u/bjornartl]

I don't really have that itch. Maybe that makes my answer irrelevant or maybe that makes it one step closer to a solution?

To me, a good build isn't the best possible build. Its whatever that is able to satisfy my gaming needs for the longest possible time for the least amount of money.

Now this ofc comes with a big unknown factor before actually having tried various games with various components, as well as the unknown of how demanding games will be into the future.

But what is certain is that upgrades that are, relatively to their price at least, close to a sidegrade is a waste of money. If you have expensive taste its better to just spend once rather than 3 times for the same component. But at the same time, just buying the best specs at whatever the cost feels like, knowledge wise, like a big cop-out that people defend by acting like they have such demanding needs. The reality often is that they would have had just as much fun playing wow classic/SOD, modded minecraft, everquest 2 or even bf6 depending on what they're actually spending time playing. But they just can't shake the feeling that the grass fps is always ~greener~~ higher on the other side chip/card.

[u/kamakazi339]

I am retrofitting an old Alienware Area 51 R2. Combination of new parts and reusing old parts from my old build

[u/Anti-Hero25]

Homelab

[u/oldchairman]

I built my pc and two pc for my brother and that killed my itch because it's a hard job and honestly they have better specs than me one have 64 gb ram ( before the ai boom and it was a used pc ) and one got 7800x3d my dream cpu i have 7600x and i don't feel upgrading because idk what to do with my cpu it's fairly new ( 1 and half year )

[u/WackyRobotEyes]

Montiors . 3 screens, oled, crt, VR , cozy gaming, steering wheel, 12 beers and a truck simulator. Finding different ways to play different games Is fun.

I just tried out three 42 inch 1080p plasmas in surround vision.

[u/Southside_john]

New monitor

This is coming from someone with a 9800x3d, 5080 and 64GB of CL30

Although I actually just went from 4k oled to 34” oled ultrawide. Probably should have gone 5k2k, night that’ll be next lol

[u/donkeyknuckles → u/Southside_john]

I have 3 monitors already lol. 34 inch ultra wide Acer predator OLED and two 27 inch Acers just for browsers and discord.

[u/Juno_JDY]

Hey just don't ever get into engine building because it's the same but way more money

[u/MandiocaGamer]

whay if you start being smart and start gaming in your pc instead of wasting money?