Component Selection

Just because the specification lists between two computers looks the same, does not mean they are the same. At Titan we very carefully select every component that goes into even our least expensive computers.

We don’t use off-brand or OEM parts at all. We know exactly who made which part, what it’s reliability and quality parameters are and where to go for support if something does go wrong.

In a mass market PC it’s often hard or impossible to determine the providence of parts. GPUs, PSUs, motherboards and memory are often unbranded. Components such as capacitors and voltage regulators could be sub-par, leading to early system death or sudden failure. No-name SSDs are now also a notorious way to fatten profit margins while seriously compromising performance and lifespan. A computer is only as good as the weakest component and mass market PCs are often mostly made from poor quality components.

Apart from quality, there’s also performance issues. Mass market PCs might have a motherboard chipset that bottlenecks the CPU, GPU and memory. This happens because the retailer wants to sell the machine based on components consumers can understand. They don’t care about things like bandwidth constrainment and trust the typical consumer won’t realize their expensive new computer is not performing as well as it should. We, however, know how to build a balanced computer that lives up to its potential.

Design and Build Quality

At first glance a mass market computer looks like the real deal. The cases have fancy lights, multiple fans and big side windows.

If you look a little closer however, it becomes apparent that they are slapped together haphazardly. As quickly as possible to maximise profit. This means that cable management is usually terrible and airflow nonsensical. Crucially things like thermal paste may be misapplied, leading to poor thermal performance. Hotspots within the case can also lead to early system death. Cheap cases make for bad upgrade or maintenance experiences, not to mention awkward ports that are small in number.

Testing, Service and Support

It’s impossible for mass market sellers to test each machine properly before shipping. This means a significant number of shipped computers may be dead on arrival or die the first time they are put under stress. Especially with cheap, low-quality components.

At Titan EVERY computer goes through a 24-hour torture test after building is complete. We put these computers through more than they are likely to ever see during their normal lifespan. This helps us catch thermal problems and weed out bad components before the computer ever gets to you. Thanks to this returns are almost non-existent and we can attest to catching quite a few bad DIMMs and faulty capacitors before a computer ever reaches a customer.

If something does go wrong with your Titan computer down the line, we offer lifetime support and 2-year parts support. We also only employ people who are actual technical experts and can sort your problem out quickly and efficiently. No mass market supplier is going to provide that level of service. Generally you’ll get an in-warranty replacement of a computer that’s just as bad and will fail in the same way eventually.