I've had my fill.
What is not factored in to such analyses is the marginal cost of your time. If you are an unemployed garbageman, go ahead. My employer charges the government $150/hour of my time, so I use that as a 'reasonable' estimate. Would I pay a tech $150/hour to build me a super-duper PC when one from Alienware would be 95% as good? Add the cost of time to this analysis and it evaporates.
Everybody needs a hobby; if building PCs is yours, be my guest.
"A boat is a hole in the water into which you pour money." Or a PC can be a substitute 'hole' for those without access to the briny deep.
--Boris
Very time consuming, but I learned stuff that is nice to know! I do have the time now.
There are two flip sides to this: (1) If something goes wrong with the machine, the manufacturer is still in business, the machine is still in 99.44% stock condition, and the manufacturer has a clue about the machines he's selling, you may be better off that route. (2) If something goes wrong with the machine and the manufacturer's out of business (or just plain useless), you may be better off if you've built it yourself since you'll know what's "really in there".