The Build Your Own Desktop Starter Thread
 

Let's say you're either new to computers or new to the idea of building a computer. As easy as it may sound on the surface—throw a motherboard, cpu, ram, video card, hard drive, and disc drive into an enclosure—it's a bit more nuanced than you might think.

As a life-long Mac user, the only thing I know about building a PC is... well, I guess I could build a PC but I'd be worried that I might forget something or mismatch parts. It wouldn't be fun to return a cpu that doesn't go with the motherboard you picked up.

So, you under-the-hood type PC users, give us your take on how to build a decent rig. Do want to build the ultimate gaming PC? Do you want to show us how to build the perfect home theater PC? Do you have a recipe for the perfect bargain PC? Show us what you've got and walk us through your process.

---------- Post added at 02:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:42 PM ----------

Bargain PC (created by a Mac user):
Enclosure: Rosewill R102-P-BK $25
Motherboard: $28
Processor: Intel Pentium E5200 Wolfdale 2.5GHz $70
RAM: $25
Graphics: 4670 $90
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 250GB $55
Burner: LG Black $22
Power Supply: Rosewill RV350 350W $26

Total: $341

How did I do?

I really am so out of the loop that I have no concrete suggestions, but surely I can add in some tips and pointers of stupid things that I've suffered through.

Sometimes more is better - buying second-hand can be really sketchy and have really bad results. Seriously. You REALLY need to know what you're getting!!! It can be worth a little extra $$$ and save you a lot of time and possibly more money in the future.

Make sure you put the spacers on the case before you screw down the motherboard or else you will short out the motherboard. The spacers are copper-ish doodads with a threaded nub on one side, and usually a hexagonal top with threading for a screw to go inside of it.

For your first case, I recommend something a little larger - more room is nice. A removable motherboard tray is kind of convenient, as well.

Before you ever build anything, I suggest you take apart and put together at least some parts of a pre-built machine and make sure that it works. I don't recommend unscrewing stuff, but if you can get ahold of a machine from about ten years ago or so, just play around with it and get acquainted with components. Newer OEM stuff, in my experience, is mostly toolless and actually different from a homebrew PC.

I'd say desktop building can be a big money saver, but with bad decisions it can become hell. Don't get parts from shady sites, do read a lot of reviews on the sites you get them from, (eg, newegg), and make sure you understand exactly what is compatible with what. Watch out for sockets on mobos and processors, make sure the mobo fits in the case, make sure the PSU can supply enough power for your rig.
If you order the wrong video card, that could be a pain.
Overall, if you have experience tinkering with your desktops, swapping GPU's out, switching fans, hardrives, playing with master/slave seettings, adding ram, using the BIOS, etc, then go for it. Google is your best friend, keep a laptop handy next to you with wifi.
Also, if you order parts, make sure they come with cables, or order cables separately. There's nothing like getting a Hard Drive and not being able to plug it in.

Alrighty then, I'll give the old gaming PC a shot:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 Processor 2.8GHz $120
Motherboard: Gigabyte EG41MF-S2H Motherboard $100
Memory: OCZ Dual Channel 4GB PC6400 $50
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE16 640GB Hard Drive $70
Graphics: Radeon HD 4870 Turbo $250
Case: Apevia X-Qboii Blue Micro ATX Case $80 (I like blue)
Disc Drive: Lite-On DH-4B1S Serial ATA Interface Blu-ray Disc Writer $200

Total: $1140

This theoretically should do the trick with anything from CoD Modern Warfare 2 to that new Resident Evil.

If I had to give one piece of advice when it comes to more powerful gaming PCs: don't go the bargain route when it comes to your power supply. I've seen (or, more accurately, smelled) some terrible results from the cheap included-with-the-case PSU in a high end gaming machine. Make sure it can handle those other fancy components you're looking at!

In the same vein, the wattage of a PSU is almost completely meaningless. More important is that you go with a trusted, reliable brand. This power supply would work quite well with the example system above, and won't break the bank.

Electrical tape works too :) Just put it on top of the screw heads.

I think it's worth it to spend a little more on a case. I went the bargain route when building my desktop, and I wish I hadn't. Next time I'm getting a Lian Li case (so pretty).

Okay, so here's what I've got so far.

By my understanding, you should begin the process by choosing the kind of setup you want (basic word processing and web surfing, home theater, family, gaming, image/audio/video editing, industrial, server), and then move to the processor. If you don't plan on upgrading for a few years, I wouldn't suggest getting anything less than the equivalent to a 2.0GHz dual core processor. It will generally handle most of what you throw at it for the time being. If you're going to be doing intensive video editing or gaming, though, you'll likely want something a bit faster, 2.4GHz dual core or faster (I'd even say 2.8GHz or faster if you're going to be playing serious 3d games).

Then we move on to the motherboard, which requires that you know what kind of processor goes with a given motherboard. Above with my gaming rig, I chose the Intel Core 2 Duo 2.8GHz processor, which means you need a motherboard that has a "socket 775" interface for the Intel CPU I chose. The second consideration when choosing a motherboard is how big you want it. I'm partial to MicroATX, as it's a bit smaller but is still able to pack quite a punch, but you can choose what you want. Just bear in mind this will affect which case you'll eventually need.

You'll be needing memory for your computer, so once you've chosen your motherboard, check that motherboard to see what kind of RAM it takes. If the RAM it needs is a bit too slow for your tastes, you may want to pick a better motherboard. The motherboard I chose for my gaming rig requires DDR 2 PC6400 RAM, and can go up to 8GB, though as I understand it that would be useless in a 32 bit system. If you're just doing the bare minimum or normal computing, you really only need maybe 1.5-2GHz of RAM. More powerful computers, however, will require more RAM. For gaming, this means you really should have 4GB. Don't worry, RAM prices have dropped quite a bit (unless you want something brand new like DDR3 1066MHz RAM, which is still very expensive).

After you've got your RAM picked you may need a graphics card. If you're just using the computer for web surfing and word processing, you can probably just get a motherboard with a crappy integrated card, but if you plan on showing high def movies, games, or video editing, you'll need a card. Fortunately, Lasreth has a thread which is the authority on video cards here. It's outstanding.

Okay, you've got all this junk and you need something to put it in, so you'll have to go back and check on what motherboard you picked out. MicroATX you say? Well perfect. Now you need to take cooling into consideration. If you've got a faster CPU, you'll need a stronger fan. The 2.8GHz processor I chose for my gaming rig will run quite hot and absolutely needs at least one strong fan in order to prevent overheating. Fortunately the case I chose has a nice big 120mm fan. If that's not enough (which is possible) I can add a second 120mm fan later to double the cooling ability. If you plan on using the same rig and upgrading later, you'll want one that can take more fans. Note: as you're assembling your rig, you absolutely need to be careful to remember spacers so as not to short anything out, as MikeSty said.

The disc drive is probably the easiest. Just check good reviews and make sure the thing comes with the necessary cables.

Power source. Like Martin said above, the wattage doesn't really come into play that often, it's more just a high number that they think people want to buy. You simply need something reliable, so look for a lot of good reviews online before purchasing. And be careful of ultra-good deals, because they can be too good to be true.

Before putting together your first computer, you may want to take apart and put back together an old PC a few times just to get a feel for where everything goes. You may also want a seasoned veteran with you when you assemble your PC.

Nice guide, looking forward to seeing the rest. Personally I feel comfortable with all the individual components, but I feel a little wary about the cables and cable management..

well, not quite. they still have 200W power supplies out there, and if you run dual SLI video cards in your 3ghz gaming rig, you're gonna find out why wattage is important ;)


Will, I'd lose that case - Heat dissipation is important and a micro ATX case is too small to do it well. Additionally, the board you chose is an ATX board, which is too large for a micro-ATX case. I recommend the Thermaltake Armor case. it's big, breezy, and has excellent airflow from the factory. You won't even have to buy any supplemental fans.

You didn't put a powersupply in there (I'm only looking at the gaming rig - though if you also wanna talk about the bargain rig, stay the hell away from Rosewill. They suck). Again, I recommend Thermaltake, at least 500W, and make sure it's a Toughpower, not a Purepower.

ATI makes nice cards but I've enver been a big fan of their drivers. I tend to stick with nVidia, but that's largly personal preference.

Also, WD makes nice stuff, but Seagate has in my experience been more reliable.

Even if I slapped another 120mm fan on there?
Heh, oops. I read the specs on the mobo too fast. Let this be a lesson to everyone? Read twice, order once.
I'm pretty sure the case comes with one.
Didn't Seagate recently have a huge problem with hard drive failures? Back in January, I think it was. I've used both, and I'm happy with WD.

First you have to have a place to slap it on unless you want to dremel out a hole for it, which is a pain in the butt. Second, the more fans you put on there, the more noise you have, which gets annoying after while. And third, random placement of fans can have little to no effect, or can even harm, cooling - it all depends on the airflow of the case.

Possibly, but in most cases, if a case comes with a power supply, the power supply is going to suck. and a bad power supply can kill the other components, requiring a replacement of the machine. That's one lesson you don't wanna learn the hard way ;)

Another consideration is noise. After all it can be hard to focus on whatever you are working on at your computer if it is screaming like a banshee. As shakran mentioned, more fans = more noise. Preferably a case with a 120 mm fan would be best. Plus a power supply with only one fan helps. Plus good heatsinks on the processor and video card. Using a huge heatsink with heatpipes and tons of fins with lots of surface area dissipates heat more effectively than a smaller heatsink with less surface area and no heatpipes. As a result you get more cooling from the same fan or can even use a slower spinning fan to reduce the noise level.

I have an old Antec SX835II case, an older Core 2 Duo processor, and an old AGP card with a passive heatsink. With the original Antec power supply, all 5 case fan spots filled, and the stock processor heatsink and fan and no fan on the video card the computer was loud. And hot. Processor temps typically around 130 degrees F and the video card would reach an eye popping 175 degrees F just doing desktop apps. I recently made some changes, while keeping the same case for the time being I replaced the power supply with this one, put in this cpu cooler, and promptly replaced the fan on the cooler with this one. I also figured out how to mount this 92 mm case fan to my passive video card heatsink. I got rid of all the case fans, and mounted the cpu cooler so the fan points right at the holes left from the 2 rear case fans. I left all 5 case fan spots open, and the result is I went from 8 fans to 3 total. And yet my cpu temps dropped about 20 degrees and my video temp dropped about 65 degrees, just due to the more intelligent layout of the fans and the more efficient processor heatsink. Plus the fans are quiet enough I don't hear them, just a little noise from the hard drive.

When I built my first computer I never took noise into consideration, and now having done so it makes using the computer so much more pleasant.

On the subject of fans, bigger fans spin slower and are therefore generally quieter. I have two Vantec Stealth 120mm fans in my case, one for intake and one for exhaust. They've been serving me reliably for years and I'll be sad when they go. The main source of noise in my PC right now is the CPU fan, and aside from going with a Zalman or other passive cooler there's not much to be done about it.

Airflow is tricky. As noted, more fans aren't always better. Creating an efficient airstream is more important.

this is why I recommend the Armor. it has a 120mm front fan, a 90mm top fan, a 90mm rear highmount fan, and optionally (and I recommend it) a 25cm (that is not a typo) sidefan. The case is whisper quiet, yet easily cools whatever you put in it. it's all in the airflow design and the volume of the case - -smaller cases heat up faster, and the Armor is anything but small ;)


http://www.ibuypower.com/ibp/Images/...ig/Armor_1.jpg

Hey Will and the others:

Any more thoughts on motherboard choice and power supplies particularly modular v non-modular?

Umm...what? You can't not use spacers, and I can't think of a plausible way to use electrical tape instead.

I bought my first modular power supply recently and it was a GREAT decision. I'm pretty obsessive-compulsive when it comes to a clean case and what a difference it made! Cleans up your workspace, improves airflow, and looks beautiful if you have a case window.

Of course, the benefits are mostly cosmetic. If you don't have a window or don't care too much about cleanliness and airflow, you can save a couple $ by sticking with a non-modular PSU.

Will, that's a pretty good guide, especially since you are a Mac guy. The decision path you show is pretty good. I've built three computers so far. I did my most recent one in Feb.


Processor&Motherboard
Like you said, the most important thing is that you decide what you want to do with your rig. You want to buy a processor that matches up with what you want to do. However, you still need to look toward the future. Right now, you can get great deals on the dual cores and even the quad cores. However, part of the reason for this is because their associated socket (775) has been superseded by the LGA 1366. Yes there is quite a price difference but it is worth it.

If you want to do serious video editing/encoding, you really should go with the Core i7. CPU and motherboard will run $540. It isn't that much more than a quad core with a nice motherboard. It's performance on encoding video is far superior to the Core 2 Quads.

Another thing to look on the motherboard the inputs. How many SATA drives can you run? What does the back panel have on it? How many PCI-e slots does it have? If you wanted to, could you do 2 or 3 way SLI?

Memory
DDR3. DDR3 prices have dropped like a rock. In Feb, I paid $160 for 6GB of DDR3 and now similar kits are about $90.

Video Card
Again, look at what you have and what you might want to do. Dual displays? What resolutions do you use? You can get awesome cards for less than $200 (4870 OR GTX 260).

Heat Sink
Another very important thing is the heat sink. I went with the stock cooler on my rig and it isn't good enough. When I start the second pass in my encoding jobs the temperature shoots way up. As a result, I needed to run it on a lower performance setting during this. Soon enough I'll get a good cooler and I'll be able to even overclock it.

Case
I wouldn't do MicroATX. Today's video cards are behemoths and you want plenty of room for all the drives you might have in it. I have a mid tower and I wish I had bought a full tower. My case is almost full and cramped. I ended up doing a shitty cable job because I was running out of space. I have three platter HDDs, one SSD, one vid card, a BD-ROM, DVD Burner, and multi card reader. I can squeeze at least one more HDD in there but it would be nice if it didn't have to be so cramped.

Power Supply
Don't cheap out. Also, look towards what you might do in the future. A new computer using a powerful vid card should have at least 500 watts.

Cables
A good motherboard should come with all the internal cables you need. If you need more, cannibalize your old system for the rest.

There's a great article on Gizmodo today about how to build a moderately serious gaming PC (that can play Crysis at 40 fps) for under $500. Check it out here. The gist:
Holy crap, that's not bad at all.

Also, because it fits perfectly with the thread, here's this: Lifehacker - The First-Timer's Guide to Building a Computer from Scratch - Hardware Installation Probably the best how-to I've come across in my search to grow beyond my Mac roots. There should be a movie about this. Called "Roots".

Antec 300
 

http://fawktastic.com/imgprd2897_Antec300.jpg
http://fawktastic.com/antec_300b.jpg

http://http://www.antec.com/Believe_...ct.php?id=MjQ=

# 9 Drive Bays:
• External 3 x 5.25"
• Internal 6 x 3.5" for HDD
# Cooling System:
• 1 rear 120 x 25 mm TriCool™ Fan with 3-speed switch control.
• 1 top special 140 x 25 mm TriCool™ Fan with 3-speed switch control
• 2 front (optional) 120 mm fans to cool the hard drives
• 1 side (Optional) 120 x 25 mm Fan to cool graphic cards
# Washable air filters reduces dust build up in your system, which helps keep your system cooler
# Perforated front bezel for maximum air intake
# 7 expansion slots
# Top mounted I/O ports for easy access
• 2 x USB 2.0
• HDA & AC'97 Audio In and Out
# Unit dimensions:
• 18" (H) x 18.3" (D) x 8.1" (W)
• 45.8 (H) x 46.5 (D) x 20.5 cm (W)
# Weight:
• Net: 15.9lbs / 7.2kg
• Gross: 18.7lbs / 8.5kg

Usually about $ 50 - 60

all that and only 2 front mounted USB's?

That seems to be an Antec standard. Both Antec cases I've owned have only had 2; even the high-end Antec Nine Hundred gaming case only has 2 front USBs. Are there many cases around with more than that?

I agree with laconic1; getting rid of computer noise is my main goal. FYI, here's my setup:

- Antec P182 case. Main selling point: the power supply is at the bottom of the case, seperated from the rest of the components. It has a lot of other features, of course. The regular 120 mm casefans have been replaced with even more quiet Nexus fans.
- Gigabyte P35-DS4 motherboard. Passive cooling with heatpipes = no noisy 40mm fan.
- Intel P8400 dual-core. I specifically didn't go for quad-core because this CPU generates less heat. Besides, in most real-world applications the extra cores won't matter.
- 4 gb of memory, with extra heat spreaders. Not that important, but the extra cooling is a nice bonus.
- Scythe Ninja CPU cooler. Waaaaaay overkill for the processor. But that only means the 120 mm Nexus casefan can run at around 500-600 rpm (= no noise). (The CPU is 35 degrees C). I've mounted it using a bolt-through kit from another CPU cooler. The normal mounting method (regular Intel) looks waaay to weak for the heavy cooler.
- MSI videocard, geforce 8800GT, with huge cooler (Zalman). This is the one thing I would change. The cooler is pretty damn quiet, but it's the only component I can hear...
- Corsair 520 watt PSU, with big 120 mm fan. I specifically picked this one over the 650 watt PSU because it's even more quiet. And I really don't need more power.
- 2 x 750 Gb Samsung harddisks. Picked because they're quiet. They're mounted in the lower drivebay, using the (standard P182) rubber spacers. The spacers stop any vibration from spreading to rest of the case; less vibration = less noise.

On a normal day, my computer is almost impossible to hear, even from up close. And it's powerful enough to easily run every game I throw at it.

I post this to show what can be achieved with a normal budget, without going to extremes. I picked each and every component for it's low noise and (relatively) good performance. I would never buy a noisy computer again.

(edited: videocard was wrong. sorry will.)

Yeah, I'd imagine the 8600GT is audible, especially when putting it through it's paces. Are there any comparable graphics cards that are quieter?

I spoke too soon (and without too much thinking). It's an 8800GT. DUH.

And it's still quiet. :P

(FYI: http://tech-reviews.co.uk/reviews/msi-nx8800gt-zilent/)

The Antec 300 is the best case ever made in the history of computer cases.

That is all.

No seriously, I built my last rig with it and it's the best I've ever seen. Super quiet, easy access, cable management, tons of space, cool design.

That's a really well designed card. The cooling system is quite an eye-treat, too.

This. 1000% I actually have its big brother the 900, which is superior if you're looking for more heavy duty gaming applications.

I have an 8600 GT, which is nearly inaudible.

It depends primarily on which manufacturer your card is from and what sort of heatsink/fan they put on there. It's also not that difficult to get an aftermarket Zalman or similar passive cooler to eliminate noise entirely.

The loudest noise in my PC is my CPU fan, especially when I'm playing a game and it spools up to dissipate the extra heat. I don't really notice it until I'm done and it settles back down again, though.

I have the Antec 300 and I'm mostly happy with it. It has a lot of room but I've filled it up pretty well. Next time I'm getting bigger case. I'll be testing it's limits with the heatsink I just purchased. It is a beast.

Newegg.com - Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 120mm SSO CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

This should be the last upgrade for a while, I'll do my best to get the cables sorted out during the installation, right now it is a mess inside. It is really difficult to work around the video card. I think what I'm going to do is pull out the video card and PSU so that I can move things around a bit and see if I can get things under control a little better.

The side doors are thin aluminum and bend easily. I accidentally dropped the side door on my tile floor and now the corner is bent just enough that I can't close the door all the way.

By the looks of it, the P182 is better. :skeptical:

The 300 has the same basic idea as the P182, but lacks the extra features that make the latter really stand out.

I would hope so considering it costs around 3x more..

The on/off buttons on the 300 feel really cheap and flimsy. The exhaust fans (120mm and 140 mm) can be set at three different speeds and that is nice. However, you have to open the case up to adjust the speeds.

Still a nice case but it has its limitations.

You can solve that problem with a fan controller. That's assuming there's a regular 3- or 4-pin connector on the fans.

I'll vouch for the P182 any day. I've had one for almost 2 years now and it's excellent!

One thing I didn't realize before buying is that it's quite a bit heavier than most cases. The steel used for noise-cancelling probably has something to do with that. I recommend it for anyone who likes quiet and doesn't need to move their computer around too much.

Has anyone actually built their own case from scratch or created a casemod? I'm just curious.

Lasereth and I have modded some cases in the past and it's just not worth it if you don't have a boat load of tools and materials at your disposal. All of those massively awesome case mods you see online are usually done by people who have a hookup at work to use amazing tools and stuff. It's really hard to do visually pleasing mods without an arsenal of tools readily available.

It would be cool to add a window to the side door of my case but although I have the tools to cut the aluminum, I don't have the skillz it would take to make it look good.

does a piece of plywood nailed to a wall count? I screwed the motherboard to my first BBS to that back in the 80's. Even had the (big freaking giant hard drive that stored like, 2 megs) screwed down to the thing. I nailed it to the framed-but-not-sheetrocked wall in the basement. Considering the air volume of the case was. . the entire basement, cooling was not a problem at all.

beyond that, like the others have said, it's damn hard unless you're experienced with metalworking, and have the right tools, you're better off getting a prefab. If all you wanna do is a case window, hell, it's hard to find a case these days that doesn't have one.

It's amazing how much a difference a good heat sink can make. I got mine in the mail yesterday and there is about a 20 C drop in temperature at full load.

Question: how does this Quad-core stack up against this Dual Core, in terms of games?

For this very moment, higher speed dual core is better than lower speed quad core. Most games aren't really programming to use quad cores right now, but I'd imagine that will change as more cores become more prevalent.

biznatch: the dual vs quad core debate has been around for a long time. Generally speaking, higher clocked 2's are better than lower clocked quads. With the exception of a few newer games. Some believe quads are more future proof..others say theres no such thing as future proof and point out the slow pace of adoption of software utilizing multi-cores.

I say split the difference and get an AMD tri-core that is somewhere in between obviously; more cores, higher clock speed. :) But if you're stuck to Intel, the 8400 is generally known as better value than the 8500.

In my setup right now I have the 8500 Wolfsdale, 3.16GHz, but what I want is better performance. The 8500 does perform better than the 8400, right? Or are they fucking with numbers again, and making things senseless?

For games, the higher clock speed 8400 performs better than the lower clock speed 8500.

He said it's a better value because if you can afford an equal clock speed quad core, of course that will give you better performance.

Whoops, forgive my mistake/sloppiness. When I was referring to the 8400 I was thinking of the E8400 C2D not the Q4D--this processor seems to be the value gamers part of choice up til the Phenom 2's arrived.

As for the 2.66 Quad, you're obviously never gonna reach the OC of the 3.16 for those games that rely purely on clock speed. I'd call it a toss-up as to what is the better CPU depending on your usage characteristics. If you already have the 8500 I wouldn't bother upgrading for another year or two when there's a more compelling argument to add more cores. As it is, it seems the software hasn't caught up to the hardware capabitilies (CPU-wise) if you ask me. Save your cash for more RAM or a higher end GPU. :)

I just built my first pc last weekend (re-using old case, monitor, etc. for now)
Used for web, medium gaming, word processing, movies/music,...possibly audio recording when I get to it.
Here is what I got, all from Newegg:
ASRock A780GMH/128M AM2+/AM3 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $69.99
AMD Athlon 64 X2 7750 Kuma 2.7GHz AM2+ 95W Dual-Core Black Edition CPU $59.99+$7.59 s/h
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB)240-pin DDR2 SDRAM 1066 (PC2 8500)Dual Channel mem. $47.99
Corsair CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V Power Supply $74.99
Sapphire Radeon ATI HD4830 512Mb Graphics Card $84.99
Total shipped $345.54
I'm very happy with it so far, only game I've played yet is Oblivion IV. Graphics turned up to max on most things and medium on a few others. Very COOL!

About a month ago I had my heart set on a 4800 series ATI card but forgot that my outdated mobo was PCI only!
So I settled for a PCI Radeon HD2400 and 1Gb RAM upgrade. Played Oblivion IV for 3 days(lightly choppy but vastly superior to my nvidia FX5200 which couldn't even play the game) Then the computer was just dead when I woke up one day. I was quite distraught but decided to go and try a first build.
Now I end up with the card I originally wanted, so it worked out.:)

Thought I would mention the couple of hitches I encountered for those contemplating a 1st build to consider:
-Removing screws for old mobo and the last one is not a screw, it's like a thing that must be crimped from 4 sides in order to remove. As if a special tool would be needed. And it was a very tough location to reach! Tools needed: needle nose pliers.
-Case fan hookup on new mobo in different location. Old case fan wire wouldn't reach it. Had to splice in some wire to get it to reach (temporary fix). Tools needed: elec. tape, wire strippers (or teeth).
-4 days after having it up and internet ready, it just wouldn't access the net anymore! I spent an hour with DSL customer service (not to mention several hours of my own fumble-fucking around with network connections), they said it was connected and my computer was at fault. The next day after another hour on the phone we discovered that my DSL modem has an internal password and it had somehow reset itself. Oh RLY?

Sorry for the lengthy post, I don't post very often.:)

Hey guys, finally, I ordered my PC. I would post that in the thread I started about it, but this one seems more current, and it's not a bad idea to have a mega thread for desktop building anyway.
Since it is my first build, I will probably run into a couple problems. Currently I don't yet have a tracking number, so I have no idea when it'll be here. But I think I'll be asking questions here as soon as I get it, at least for stuff google can't answer. The thing I'm most intimidated by is putting processor in place. I'll try and keep a cool head.
Goddammit, I can't wait! Final build is here:


Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

$54.95


Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8500 - Retail

$184.99

Logitech 967740-0403 Black USB Standard Internet 350 USB Keyboard - OEM
Item #: N82E16823126012

$9.25

Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive Black SATA Model AD-7240S-0B - OEM
Item #: N82E16827118030

$23.99

XFX PVT98WYDFH GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814150314

$134.99

Thermaltake TR2 W0070RUC 430W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16817153023

$35.99

Western Digital Caviar SE WD3200AAJS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822136098

$49.99

ASUS P5Q SE PLUS LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813131347

$96.99

Rosewill RFA-120-BL 120mm 4 Blue LEDs LED Case Fan - Retail
Item #: N82E16835200049

$4.99

Crucial Ballistix 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model BL2KIT25664AA80A - Retail
Item #: N82E16820148212

Nvidia Gift Call of duty - World at war - OEM
Item #: N82E16800999088

Total, including shipping, amounts to about $660. Now pray that everything works.

The actual physical labor involved in this nowadays is probably the easiest part. There's no longer motherboard jumpers to set, at least for fsb and multiplier, nor do hdd's have them anymore.

They've even changed the brackets on the heatsinks so you no longer have to use a screwdriver or other nasty sharp object close to fragile silicone (Assuming you're using the OEM Heatsink, but most 3rd Party ones provide the same funtionality.)

All of these components are keyed to only fit the correct way, so the most important information I can give you is....

If it doesn't go in easily, it ain't meant to go in that way

There are two times when you'll be forced to push something uncomfortably hard to put a computer together. The first is when you're putting RAM in. I always feel like I'm going to snap something for how hard I have to push to get the damn thing to click in and set. The second is (depending on the processor and mobo design) securing the processor in place with the little lever apparatus that you use to lock it down.

There are a ZILLION online guides for building computers, many of them with very clear pictures accompanying the instructions. I used 3 or 4 in parallel along with the instruction manuals for my parts when I put my computer together. It was very smooth.

Be patient, be gentle but be firm if you need to because, occasionally, you do.

Well, I had meant to take pics and document the process as I went, but as you can imagine, after weeks of careful planning, when I got my boxes yesterday, I just pushed everything off my desk and tore those boxes open.
After about 6 hours of careful reading, cross checking 3 different manuals (case, mobo, PSU), moving things around so they fit better (my CD and HDD had to be close together since their SATA power connectors were so darn close. Making sure I don't need to fuck with jumpers was stressful too, I'm glad I don't have IDE drives though.

When I put in the GPU (which is huge), I almost shit my pants. Seems like PCIe cards "snap" into place with a lever kind of thing...I definitely don't remember that with my old AGP. This one made a really loud noise whem I pushed it in, my first thought was that I cracked the mobo, or the GPU.
Anyway, booted to BIOS, glad I didn't need to RMA anything. It's still one 2 gigs of ram until I figure out what I wanna install first. Probably Vista 64bit. Also, anyone aware of any problems with dual booting the new Windows 7 release candidate and Vista?

Windows 7 is on it, now. Had nothing else to install, except for ubuntu, but I couldn't wait to install Left 4 Dead on this beast.
Windows 7 instantly recognized my 5-6 year old wireless PCI card, so that's good, and I am now posting from it.
For a build that was started late last night, I gotta say I'm pretty impressed with myself, and there is indeed nothing more gratifying than watching your machine run smoothly.

Next steps: install drivers for GPU, run windows update, and then clean up the mess I made while building this.

Hey guys first time builder here..

Would love to see some feedback/compatibility check before I pull the trigger on this build:

Case: Cool, simple, roomy and cheap from a good brand.
Canadian Prices: Cooler Master - Cooler Master Centurion 5 - Blue ATX Mid-Tower Case with... - CACT05UB
Cooler Master Centurion 5 - Blue ATX Mid-Tower Case with Front USB, Firewire and Audio Ports
54$

Mobo: Crossfire, AM3 support, cheap DDR2 ram
Canadian Prices: Gigabyte - Gigabyte MA790GP-UD4H AMD790GX ATX AM2+/AM3 Sideport 2PCI-E Sound... - GAMA790GPUD4H
Gigabyte MA790GP-UD4H AMD790GX ATX AM2+/AM3 Sideport 2PCI-E Sound GBLAN HDMI CrossFireX Motherboard (GA-MA790GP-UD4H)
$144 after 10 rebate


Power supply: Cheap and modular for cable mgmt
Canadian Prices: OCZ - OCZ ModXStream Pro 700W Power Supply (OCZ700MXSP) - OCZ700MXSP
700W OCZ power supply
70$ after 30 rebate

or

Power supply: More expensive, but higher quality.
Canadian Prices: PC Power & Cooling - PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad Crossfire 750W ATX... - S75CF
PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad CrossFire 750W ATX V2.2 EPS12 24PIN Active PFC Power Supply Red
100$ after 20 rebate

CPU: Gaming, overclocking value.
Canadian Prices: AMD - AMD Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition Triple Core 2.8GHz 1.5MB L1 Cache... - HDZ720WFGIBOX
AMD Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition Triple Core 2.8GHz 1.5MB L1 Cache 6MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 95Watt 45nm - Retail
$170

DVD drive: lightscribe for ~2$, why not.
Samsung SH-S223Q/BEBS 22X DVD+-RW SATA DVD Writer Black Lightscribe OEM
NCIX.com - Buy Samsung SH-S223Q/BEBS 22X DVD+-RW SATA DVD Writer Black Lightscribe OEM - SH-S223Q/BEBS In Canada.
30$

(I have some plain 4gb ram, a 500gb hard drive...and would budget 100-150$ on a gpu though that build should work with an integrated gpu on the mobo).

That's a great mobo, I built my friends with that but the non crossfire model.

If you don't need crossfire I'd imagine that the model without it is cheaper, and you don't unless you plan on playing on a very large monitor at very high resolutions (Plus with a 150 dollar budget for video you're not going to be able to get 2 cards anyways, unless you're thinking of expanding in the future).

I'm a little confused at the Integrated GPU comment, you're listing the CPU as gaming/overclocking. There is no Integrated GPU on the market that you'll be happy gaming with, and this motherboard also doesn't have one.

Case is really nothing but aesthetic preference, but my recommendation is earlier in this thread.

If you look specifically at the items in colour, you will notice that you have mentioned a duo core processor, which is the processor required for 64 bit software, so if you install Windows 7 or Vista in the 64 bit configuration, then the extra memory would be just fine.

Other than that, your write up and research is spot on. I am looking forward to seeing your new rig and finding out how it performs. I have been building PCs since their inception. My first one was a 286 SX 16 Mhz, with 1 mb of ram, and a 40 mb hard drive.....so if you look at the specs, it has been a while since my first one. Since then I have NEVER bought a pre-made computer. I have always built them by hand, and in the older days changed the jumpers and created liquid cooling systems to over clock for fun. I can remember the first time I made my old 66 mhz computer run a full 30 minutes at 160 mhz before the magic smoke came out.....ahh the good old days. lol.

Oh, I'm used to thinking of it in terms of XP. Not to derail, but what are your thoughts on Windows 7?

It's going to be strange not to have a piece of fruit adoring my computer. Maybe I'll give OSx86 a shot.

Windows 7 is the shit.

Windows 7 is indeed the shit, IMO. Haven't has a single problem with it, the current RC really seems very stable. And it looks amazing, and is easier to interact with, IMO.

I too have heard nothing but good comments on Windows 7. I am interested in getting the RC of it, but I have yet to find a place to download it!

Microsoft is offering the ISO and keys for downloading! I have to admit that I haven't installed mine yet, but I hear nothing but good things about it.

I just downloaded Windows 7 RC from Microsoft the other day. It is very cool, too bad my crappy Lexmark x85 printer/scanner hasn't the drivers for it (or Ubuntu, or XP 64). I was real excited about using it for awhile. I know--I should just buy a new printer. (everything has to be so difficult!)
Screw you, Lexmark!

I just ordered a bunch of parts!

AMD Phenom II 720 BE
Asus M4something AM2+/3 DDR2 Mobo
Seasonic SSHT 650w
Ati 4850 (115$ after 20 rebate)

For 500$ Canadian...or I guess 420-450 US. Planning on getting a Cooler Master 690 Case to finish it off..

In terms of cases, I haven't tried many, but I definitely love the Antec 300. Very nice design, with lots of thoughtful additions: a cable compartments for tucking them in, the handy fan cages in the front, just about everything just felt right when putting this PC together.
If I had a bigger budget, though, I would have liked to get something with a couple 25cm fans. Nice, cool and quiet.

Just got the Antec 900 last week from Newegg for $109 shipped, very nice case. It's the only case I've ever bought so I don't have much to compare with--but I really like it. I have an Arctic Cooler 64 Pro coming Thursday to try and cool this processor down some more. For some reason I have become obsessed with CPU and case temps.

All my parts are in! Time to finally start this project after maybe a year of looking around at parts. :)

Any particular online guides or quick personal tips for a first time builder?

Don't forget the spacers! Like MikeSty said:

I used this as a guide:

Lifehacker - The First-Timer's Guide to Building a Computer from Scratch - Hardware Installation

I also used another site that I'm looking for but can't find. The manuals that came with your components-especially for case and motherboard-will also serve as a good guide when the online ones aren't quite cutting it. I'll keep looking for you, though.

Edit: Found one of the guides I liked from Maximum PC.

You can find the simpler, quicker guide here: http://www.maximumpc.com/article/fea..._pc?page=0%2C1

You can find a newer and more thorough guide here: http://www.maximumpc.com/article/fea...ide?page=0%2C9

Aside from Willravel's comment about the spacers, just start plugging things in. Each cord only fits in one plugin. It you have to force it, it doesn't belong there.

Well I'm up to my arms in power cables. Feeling not bad so far, but still abit overwhelmed.

-Case is all set up, got the DVD drive in and hooked up SATA and power.
-PSU mounted
-Brass standoffs mounted and motherboard installed, IO shield grudgingly mounted.
-CPU and heatsink mounted without any problems at all YAY! CPU fan hooked up
-Hard Drive mounted, power and SATA connected
-RAM installed
-(just gonna use the IGP gpu right now to limit possible issues while building)
-USB and firewire connections to front panel
-Rear chassis fan (3 pin?) hooked up to MOBO
-Front chassis fan 3 pin hooked up to MOBO
-20? 24? pin main power to MOBO hooked up. However, there is also a 4 pin sort of plug off in another corner of the MOBO, I've heard that I should not plug in both..can I get confirmation?

What's left to do:
-There is a side fan, but only has molex connection..uh I guess this goes to the PSU?
-A couple of lose case cables that I don't recognize. AC97? HD audio?
-Gotta connect some light led's, sound etc to the MOBO but Asus provides a nice plastic piece that seems to hold the lose 1 pin cables.
-I don't seem to have a power supply fan cable to connect my PSU to the mobo? What's up with that?
-Side fan with a molex...no way to connect to motherboard, does this go right to the PSU?

Would love to hear any thoughts or advice as I try to complete..

That's what she sai.... nevermind.

RadioMonk, that sounds great. I don't have any specific advice, but I'd love to see maybe a pic or some tests when you've got it done.

ExtremeTech just released their <$800 gaming rig specs for 2009 and they're really good. The competition in the CPU and GPU markets are really driving prices dow, which means this year's rig is much faster than last year's. The specs are as follows:
CPU: Core 2 Quad Q8400, 2.66GHz ($195)
MoBo: ASUS P5Q SE Plus ($120)
GPU: EVGA GeForce 260 GTX Core 216 SSC ($220)
Memory: OCZ's 4GB DDR2-800 ($35)
Case/PSU: Cooler Master RC-534 w/ 460w PSU ($100)
Hard Drive: Western Digital 320GB @7200rpm ($52!)
DVD Burner: Sony Optiarc DVD burner ($26)

That's $748 for a gaming PC that won't have to be upgraded for a few years. It's a heck of a deal.
The $800 Killer Gaming PC - How To by ExtremeTech

Ask and ye shall receive. I got up my nerve and hit the PSU power..then the moment of truth...and it's live.

No hitches at all. Super glad that there were no DOA components or incompatibilities as far as I can tell. Looking forward to putting in my 4850 for some hardcore gaming action. ;)

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...ctures_I-1.jpg

I feel great for having finally accomplished it on my own after months of looking at pictures and reading stories about building computers. What can I say, good luck to all the other potential builders out there. :)

Paging Dr. Ziptie!

Congrats on getting it all together. I agree that it's a pretty amazing rush to finally push that button and have everything light up and purr like a kitten. Just get those cables cleaned up, slap your GPU in there and off you go.

Decided to post some pictures of my computer which I built in January based on the lovely advice of people here (largely Lucifer).

Tried to get some pictures which show off the lightning but I guess my camera really isn't cut out for that. The picture with the case open, incidentally, was taken with the computer on and running WoW so everything's on and spinning. I am shocked that my camera was fast enough to caught the fans as if they were standing still, but there it is.

Dammit I think I spoke too soon...gonna start a new troubleshooting thread to keep this one positive for people. :/

http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/tilted-...ter-build.html

(would appreciate help from all the computer savvy people here!)

frosstbyte, do you have your power supply fan facing down?

I'd really like to say "no I don't" but instead I'll say "You wouldn't believe how fast you can swap out a power supply when someone points out a mistake like that."

Can you tell this was my first build? :(

Here's the mine, I put it together in February.

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/5388/dsc04034b.jpg

frosstbyte:
The reason I noticed is because I have the same case and power supply (mine's only the 450 watt though).
I was thinking "wow that all looks very familiar, except why is my CORSAIR upside down and that ones right side up?"
(This was my 1st build also.)

kutulu:
what kind of heatsink/fan is that?

It's a Noctua NH-U12P and it is awesome. It lowered my load temps from 90C to 60C. It's also nearly silent. This particular model is for Socket 1366 but they have another that works with multiple sockets.

Newegg.com - Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 120mm SSO CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

90c? wow you couldve almost boiled water in there.:)
Anyway, looks like a bad motherfucker.:thumbsup:
I just put an Arctic Cooler Freezer 64 Pro last week on mine, working very nicely. I don't check load temps much but while idling I see about 10-15 F lower than the shredded tin can that came with my AMD dual core.

90 is rather high...I thought 65-70 was around the limits of what you should do safely? The stock hsf on my AMD ph2 720 is not so bad. I can push it from 2.8-->3.3 with a mild OC and it still runs no higher than 56-57c.