What PC Part Do You Feel is The Most Important?

[Fragems]

I went with the Motherboard since I always center my builds around it. I always focus my builds around power and expandability so picking a motherboard which doesn't only support the newest tech but also has room to grow is essential to me. Also while I do upgrade my computers on a pretty regular basis I have never bothered upgrading a Motherboard because simply put by the time you need a new motherboard you might as well start a new computer build.

[Korpi]

I consider PSU the correct answer. Other components rely on it and it can take them with it. It doesn't cost much to get a good quality PSU, as opposed to having to spend hundred(s) to "step an upgrade level" with GPU, CPU. It's one of only parts that transfers to the next build(s) well.

Well I don't know about "most important"... but most integral or so.

After that I would put my money into the display(s), then rest.

[Ziggy]

This poll is wacky because you really don't have a computer until you have all those parts in place. On that note, I went with motherboard. It's the foundation for everything. You can have the best PSU, GPU, CPU, whatever U but if your motherboard is outdated, it's all a bunch of paper weights.

Yes, this poll is wacky. The old adage works perfectly. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

A monitor isn't really part of the computer. The COMPUTER will work perfectly fine, even with a broken monitor. However, you can't exactly use a computer without a screen, unless you're clairvoyant (but then why would you even need a computer?) so... I guess the same would go for the keyboard, although you can get away without a mouse or speakers (and any other peripherals).

And a computer doesn't technically need a case. You can run a computer perfectly fine without one. However, let's face it, no one does that for the most obvious reasons (to contain and protect all the components), at least not long term. But that being said, a BAD case can cause your computer to malfunction or not work at all, so I suppose it's just as important of a link in the chain as the rest of the parts.

But I'm just being funny.

Cooling is a yes and no sort of thing if you ask me. A CPU will come with a HSF that's capable of keeping it cool. So as long as your case doesn't suck (above paragraph) it's a non-issue. Unless you're overclocking or something, but we'll just assume not.

The core components are the mobo, CPU, RAM, HDD and PSU. Aside from a keyboard and monitor, and depending on if the mobo has onboard video that's all you actually need to run the computer. Speakers, optical drives and other peripherals are non-essentials. But the RAM, CPU, etc are the things that all need to work properly, and all the time, or else you don't have a computer to use. For that reason, they're all equally important.

But, I voted PSU. If I HAD to chose just one, I'd chose PSU. Like Hobie said. You could have all top of the line components, tested by top physicists and confirmed to be in the best possible working order, but have a malfunctioning computer because of the power supply.

You could say the same about any of the essential components. Have all the best stuff but a bad stick of RAM that causes blue screens all the time. But pretty much no other component has the potential to damage other components. Sure, I suppose a cap could leak on the mobo and damage something else. But a poor PSU could take out EVERYTHING. That's why I'd say it's the most important.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

I'm including monitor with the peripherals.

I'm a multimedia kind of guy. Yes GPU power is important to me but not nearly as much as a comfy mouse and keyboard, a beautiful monitor, and a headset I can wear for days. With GPUs it's easy, get the best your money will buy. I spent so much more time thinking about the peripherals I wanted than the actual computing components.

27" Apple Cinema Display, IPS 2560x1440 @ 60hz - Big, beautiful, and decent built in speakers. Also serves as a dock for my laptop

Apple Wireless Keyboard - Tiny footprint and easily transportable, usable in my lap, and put away when I need the desk space. Only second to some ThinkPads when it comes to scissor switch keyboards (which are the only tolerable rubber membrane ones in my mind).

MadCatz MOUS9 - Comfy, adjustable, and wireless. Will last up to a full year on a single double A battery. Uses that new Smart BlueTooth tech available on very new laptops or the included BT4.0 microdongle which has a storage slot on the mouse. Okay DPI and mediocre polling rate but the wireless latency feels basically non-existent. Enough programmable buttons.

Sennheiser G4ME Zero headset - Superbly comfortable. Excellent, natural Sennheiser sound. Decent built in microphone. Doesn't require a preamp.

And obviously, every part of a computer is important to some extent, a lot of those parts are required for it to run and you really don't want a weak link in any of them. I feel like when it comes to using the computer your peripherals define the experience more than the beefy hardware you've stuck into a case under your desk.

[BoringSupreez]

Assuming you have the minimum of everything required... the CPU and RAM are most important IMO. Without those your PC won't even be good for web browsing and word processing.

[marurun]

Power supply. If you have one that's providing shitty power it can cause everything to be flaky, not work at all, or blow up. I'm speaking from experience for the latter which cost me a motherboard once.

/thread

I have lost two PCs to power supplies dying. DO NOT buy a cheap PSU, ever. A cheap case can still hold your parts. A cheap mobo or GPU may die, but can be easily replaced. A cheap PSU is the part most likely to take other stuff out with it when it dies.

[isiolia]

Saying PSU as well, mostly because it's often the most overlooked/cheaped out on part. Plus, bad selection for most parts would result in either lowered performance, or degraded user experience (crappy monitor/KB/mouse/etc), not flat out failure.


Alternatively, if you assume everything is solid, then I'd say primary storage. For the majority of computer users and uses (basically outside of gaming), there's not much that will boost the end user experience as much as a solid state drive will.

[Hobie-wan]

Assuming you have the minimum of everything required... the CPU and RAM are most important IMO. Without those your PC won't even be good for web browsing and word processing.

Yes, how did I ever browse the web with a Celeron 333 and 256 megs of ram? How did I write papers on a Pentium 100 with 16 megs of ram?

Yes with Flash, video rendering, and scripting it required more power to do web stuff, but that and running a word processor are miniscule compared to PC power these days. Phones have been able to do these things for ages too and are obviously less powerful than PCs. For the average person that isn't editing video, images, or playing 3D games, PC power is overkill and upgrading is silly. Most of these average people upgrade their 'slow' PCs because they get loaded down with crap, whether it's actual malware or just bloatware from devices and stuff they connect.

[marurun]

Assuming you have the minimum of everything required... the CPU and RAM are most important IMO. Without those your PC won't even be good for web browsing and word processing.

Yes, how did I ever browse the web with a Celeron 333 and 256 megs of ram? How did I write papers on a Pentium 100 with 16 megs of ram?

Yes with Flash, video rendering, and scripting it required more power to do web stuff, but that and running a word processor are miniscule compared to PC power these days. Phones have been able to do these things for ages too and are obviously less powerful than PCs. For the average person that isn't editing video, images, or playing 3D games, PC power is overkill and upgrading is silly. Most of these average people upgrade their 'slow' PCs because they get loaded down with crap, whether it's actual malware or just bloatware from devices and stuff they connect.

I'll give him points on RAM, though. Now that all the current web browsers support tabs and the web is no longer aiming at 56k data rates, things can get really memory heavy. For basic tasks a cheap CPU is fine, but memory is ALWAYS nice to have.

That said, PSU is still the most important, but you already knew that ; )

[GSZX1337]

Honestly, I think it's pretty stupid to say that one PC part is more important than another. Now if "important" were to be interpreted as "the part which one should invest the most money in," then I would say the GPU. Of course, the biggest benefit is the getting higher frames per second in games, but now there are general purpose applications like video encoders and photo editors utilizing CUDA and OpenCL that benefit from powerful GPUs. Also, it's surprising how far you can get with just an i3.