How to build a Computer

How to build a gaming PC!

Welcome to my guide on how to build your very own computer! As long as you do your research and ask if you ever need help you will be fine!

Motherboard (Mobo)

The motherboard or mobo is the spine of your computer. It takes the messages and sends them all over the place to wherever they are needed, so do not skimp out on your motherboard!

- Check the socket for the motherboard. You cannot fit an intel CPU in a motherboard for an older processor or an AMD processor! Be sure that the motherboard supports your CPU! Check the manufacturer's website.

- Check for wireless internet if you will need it. If your motherboard does not have any you might need to buy a wireless card to attach to the motherboard in one of the PCIe slots.

- Check the amount of PCIe slots. That is where you will plug in your graphics card and possibly a sound card or something else.

- Check which chipset the motherboard is on. For instance the ASRock Extreme3 Z87 and ASRock Extreme3 Z97 are practically the same except all Z97 motherboards will have some extra features over their Z87 equivalents as well as support for the latest intel processors.

- Check the general quality of the motherboard. You do not want something that will break within a year of use.

- Check the overclocking capabilities if you will be overclocking.

- Check for the amount of RAM slots and how much RAM it supports

- Check how many sata slots it has. If it has 6 for instance you will be able to place a maximum of 6 pieces of hardware which transfer data such as CD drives, hard drives and SSD's.

- Check for how many USB slots it has. If you have a tendency to use up 4 USB 3.0 slots and 2 USB 2.0 slots at all times be sure to have a motherboard that can support that!

- Check if it supports SLI or Crossfire. SLI is the ability to support a second graphics card. Crossfire is the AMD equivalent.

- Read the motherboard manual. There are some wires that have to be plugged in a certain way or else the computer won't turn on! You won't destroy it but it may cause a headache.

Processor (CPU)

Your CPU is the brain of your computer. It will do all of the major processing so you should pick one that you will be comfortable with. Remember that the speed that everything will run at is generally limited by your CPU unless another factor such as hard drive speed gets in the way first.

Different CPU's are for different situations. For instance if you will only be gaming you do not need an i7 4770k. You will be better off saving your money by buying an i5 4670k instead (the "k" at the end of the processor means it is unlocked, which allows for easier overclocking of the processor).

Look into the CPU and decide what will be most suitable for your situation. Keep in mind that PC parts do not scale at a 1:1 ratio when it comes to price:performance so the difference between a 250 dollar processor and a 300 dollar processor will be less than the difference between a 200 dollar processor and a 250 dollar processor.

Do not limit yourself by only looking at AMD or Intel. They are both good brands, although you should keep in mind to look behind the numbers. For instance the AMD FX-8350 is an 8-core 4 GHz beast for about $220 while the Intel i7 4770k has 4 cores at 3.5 GHz for $385. Sounds like a no-brainer right? Wrong! The i7 4770k is actually a much stronger processor. It has hyperthreading meaning it runs 8 logical cores and although it does not run at 4 GHz it can keep its own and is in fact much more efficient than the FX-8350.

Basically, look into the processor and make sure it suits your situation.

CPU Cooler

Your processor will come with a CPU cooler already but not a very good one. If you want a silent computer or want better cooling so that you can overclock you will want a better CPU cooler.

- You will have to add thermal paste to your CPU. Clean off your CPU with isopropyl alchohol using a cotton swab then add a small dab of thermal paste in the middle of the CPU. Place the CPU cooler on top and screw in the nails and you're done.

- Check reviews to make sure the CPU cooler is good enough for what you have planned.

- Check measurements. If the CPU cooler is too tall for your case it won't work. If it is too wide it may cover up your RAM.

- Closed loop liquid CPU coolers are almost silent and cool more efficiently than air coolers in most cases but they are more expensive.

- Different coolers are mounted in different ways so be sure to go over the manual to make sure you know what you're doing!

Graphics Card (GPU)

Ahh the GPU. Arguably this is the most important part of your build and where 40-50% of your money should go.

- DO NOT COMPARE AMD TO NVIDIA BY NUMBERS IT DOES NOT WORK. Google up comparisons and the frame rates that the graphics cards support, do not just base it off of the amount of vRAM they have and their clock speeds.

- Do your research. You don't want to buy an extremely hot graphics card which throttles down and performs more slowly than it should because of how how it gets.

RAM

RAM is generally simple to choose. Just keep a few things in mind.

- 1600 MHz is about the sweet spot. More than 1600 is generally more expensive and might not be worth it.

- 8GB of RAM is the sweet spot for gaming. Most games will not utilize more than 4GB but having a bit of extra room for other programs will help.

- Your motherboard will only have a certain amount of slots for RAM and will only support a limited amount of it, so don't go out and buy 64 GB of RAM to find out your motherboard can only support 32 GB.

- Dual-channel will always run faster than single channel, so two 4 GB RAM sticks in a dual channel configuration (be sure to check your motherboard because to run dual channel successfully you will need to place the RAM in the correct sockets. Some motherboards do not support dual channel as well.) will run faster than a single 8GB RAM stick in general.

- RAM coolers are practically useless. Don't bother with them. Just save your money.

Power Supply (PSU)

Your PSU will power the whole thing up! Choose one with enough power to support your computer, but don't be stingy. Cheap power supplies may say that they support up to 850W but they may only support 500W.

- A modular power supply is one where you connect only the cables you need. Non modular power supplies have all the cables connected and you will just have to deal with all of the extra ones lying around inside your case.

- If you plan on getting a second graphics card down the road make sure your PSU will have enough power to support it.

- Get an efficient power supply. Go for a power supply with at least an 80+ Bronze power rating. The better the rating the better the power supply.

Harddrive (HDD)

Storage is very basic. The general RPM standard for HDD's now is 7200. Find a decent HDD from a reputable brand and you will be fine.

- Be sure it has enough space. I got a 1 TB HDD and added a 2 TB one later on because the 1 TB HDD was running out of space.

- Remember that you have a limited amount of HDD's that you can put into your computer. The limiting factor may be space in your case if you chose a small one or the amount of SATA slots on your motherboard.

- Keep in mind that you can add another HDD whenever you want or see fit so don't rush into buying a single 4 TB HDD or whatever.

Solid State Drive (SSD)

SSD's are kind of new to the PC scene. They get rid of mechanical technology seen in hard drives and are much faster. Transfer speeds and response speeds on an SSD are amazing. Your programs will load up in milliseconds and you will always be the first one in the game.

- Check for pricing. SSD's are more expensive per GB then a HDD. For instance a 256 GB SSD is roughly $140 while a 1 TB HDD is $60.

- Remember that the extra speed is more expensive and it may be worth it to hold off on an SSD.

- Do not use your SSD as storage. Don't put pictures and music files there. Put games, programs and your operating system on it. Those are the things which you need to load fast. Not your 30 GB music collection.

Case

Your case may seem like an easy way to save a bit of money but I do not recommend this. Your case will hold everything inside it so try not to skimp out on it.

- Find one that you like the looks of.

- Be sure it is large enough to support all of your parts. Google up reviews of the case or ask on professional forums for people's opinions!

- Check for the airflow of the case. You could put all of your parts in an empty fish tank but the computer would constantly overheat and die soon enough. Keeping your parts cool is a key to having a long living set up.

- Check for a window. Windows on the sides of cases let you see inside the computer which is always nice.

- Check for how it handles wires. An expensive case will have holes and grommets allowing you to hide most of your wiring to make everything look cleaner and better.

CD/DVD Drive

A CD drive has become completely optional for most people nowadays since platforms like steam have evolved to become our main way of accessing games and such. Some people do still want them though.

- A CD drive will fit in a 5.25" bay usually in the front of your case.

- It will take up a single SATA cable and a power cable - just like a hard drive or SSD.

- They are not needed for any reason realistically but some people still want them to install things.

Monitor

Your monitor is the peripheral you will use the most (unless of course you are too busy drooling over your new gaming PC!).

- Buy a monitor you will like to look at. One with contrast that is far too high may become irritating.

- Pick a good resolution you will be comfortable with for a while. This will be the thing you stare at for hours on end!

- Different monitors have different response times and maximum frames. Be sure that the numbers suit you. Generally 5ms and below is good for a monitor and you won't notice the difference between and 5ms response time and 1ms.

- You will notice the difference between a 60hz monitor and a 120hz monitor however. 60hz means it will support up to 60 frames per second while 120hz means it will support up to 120 frames per second. In gaming 30 is generally the minimum while 60 is ideal.

- Running games at 120 frames per second requires much more power out of your GPU so don't buy a 120hz monitor if your GPU won't be able to support it.

Panda Tax

Check out these places for more information:

pcpartpicker.com - This will let you choose computer parts. It will check for any incompatibilities and it will show you some places where you can buy the items.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roFb3TNePIg - This link is to a guy names Linus from Linus Tech Tips actually building a computer. This will help when you build your rig!

www.tomshardware.com - This is a link to Tom's Hardware. These guys know everything about computers. They are very friendly so don't be afraid to ask if you are unsure about something or if you need some help making a decision.

www.reddit.com/r/buildapc - Reddit! These guys like to help people out who are looking at building their first PC!

Final note: Don't despair. Building a computer is actually very easy. Send me a message if you would like some additional help in any way! Finally, remember that Google is your friend and chances are that someone else is having the same problem as your or has asked the same question at some time so spending a couple of minutes googling something may save you a headache in the future.