I have never built my own computer before. I know a little bit about hardware, and I was wondering if you would advise building my own? What should I make sure to check before I actually order my parts. Can someone please explain to me the steps in picking the parts? Thanks a lot. It is greatly appreciated.
how hard is it to build your own computer?
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You need an 8 year degree in electronics and 200 hours of apprenticeship under your belt before you can build you own computer with relative ease. It's incredibly hard, but there are a lot of smart people on this forum.
All joking aside, it's not hard at all. If you can put Legos together you can build a computer. You just put the parts together where they should be, plug it in, and pray.
The parts you need to build your own computer are:
CPU
motherboard
ram
heatsink/fan for CPU
video card
hard drive
case
power supply
case fans
you might want a modem or NIC
some Arctic Silver 3 for the CPU
CD/DVD or whatever drives you want
You just put it all together. Good luck, it's not that hard, and much cheaper than buying a premade one.
All joking aside, it's not hard at all. If you can put Legos together you can build a computer. You just put the parts together where they should be, plug it in, and pray.
The parts you need to build your own computer are:
CPU
motherboard
ram
heatsink/fan for CPU
video card
hard drive
case
power supply
case fans
you might want a modem or NIC
some Arctic Silver 3 for the CPU
CD/DVD or whatever drives you want
You just put it all together. Good luck, it's not that hard, and much cheaper than buying a premade one.
check this site out: www.mysuperpc.com
be sure to read the guide on building the pc. it's here if you have trouble finding it. as for picking parts, that site well help you get a basic understanding of what everything does and how to put it together but I'd advise you to just post your budget and goals on this forum and people will help you out.
be sure to read the guide on building the pc. it's here if you have trouble finding it. as for picking parts, that site well help you get a basic understanding of what everything does and how to put it together but I'd advise you to just post your budget and goals on this forum and people will help you out.
its really easy after youve already done it once before. first time round its mostly finding out about the little-but-important things (using standoffs rather than screwing mobo right onto the case, using a little thermal paste and not the whole tube, etc) and maybe even more so the worrying about frying something - first time i installed a cpu heatsink it had a very tight clip and was onto an amd chip, took me quite a while getting that thing on there 'cos i was worried about cracking it.
its waaay easier building pc's now anyway, very unlikely you will have to set any jumpers on the mobo or fiddle with things in the bios.
read the "quick start guide" that comes with your hardware, pay particular attention when installing the heatsink onto the cpu (make sure its on the right war around, only a thin layer of goop, and DONT FORGET TO PLUG THE FAN IN!) and the rest is practically just plugging cables in the only place they'll fit.
its waaay easier building pc's now anyway, very unlikely you will have to set any jumpers on the mobo or fiddle with things in the bios.
read the "quick start guide" that comes with your hardware, pay particular attention when installing the heatsink onto the cpu (make sure its on the right war around, only a thin layer of goop, and DONT FORGET TO PLUG THE FAN IN!) and the rest is practically just plugging cables in the only place they'll fit.
Insidious
Diamond Member
- Oct 25, 2001
- 7,649
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It's only as hard as reading and following the instructions that come with your components!
Build the first one 'By the book', then begin to tinker as you get to understand what you have done.
-Sid
Yes, this implies that you need to buy your components from a manufacturer that provides meaningful manuals. Especially the Motherboard.
Build the first one 'By the book', then begin to tinker as you get to understand what you have done.
-Sid
Yes, this implies that you need to buy your components from a manufacturer that provides meaningful manuals. Especially the Motherboard.
Putting the parts together, ie hardware is really, really easy. Installing the software is a royal pain, still. For the various applications, including Windows, it takes several hours. Then you have the utilities that you "must have". Then you have tweaks and problem resolution. Take your time, write down each step as you do it so that you can go back and redo it if necessary. You will be very satisfied (and proud) when you are done. And, when it breaks, as every computer usually does, then you know the sucker inside and out and are ready to replace/repair as needed.
You allready have a machine right? Do what I did, before i built my first own computer I took my old one apart noting where the pieces came from and then put it all back together again.
A nice little practice run where I almost wrecked the CPU, not because of thermal compound foulups but because in those days there were no ZIF sockets for CPUs and I bent a whole row of pins getting that 486 out with a screwdriver
Nowadays just make sure the CPU cooling is properly done as that is where the most foulups occur!
A nice little practice run where I almost wrecked the CPU, not because of thermal compound foulups but because in those days there were no ZIF sockets for CPUs and I bent a whole row of pins getting that 486 out with a screwdriver
Nowadays just make sure the CPU cooling is properly done as that is where the most foulups occur!
I just put my first computer together literally 10 minutes ago. Well it took me a good two hours to get it running but thats just because i'm a newb. I bought a Barton 2500+, Epox 8rda+, and 256 Corsair XMS 3200. Board posted on first try perfectly. It took me longer to figure out how to get the power button on the case to work! I haven't started installing windows yet, i'm saving that for tomorrow morning. I know if i start now i'll stay up all night and i don't want to do that.
Just read up, do some hands-on with an old system, and you'll be good to go.
Good Luck
Just read up, do some hands-on with an old system, and you'll be good to go.
Good Luck
For me the absolute #1 most difficult thing to do is get the connectors from the front of the case plugged into the motherboard right. Those li'l bastards are poorly labeled, small, and don't adhere to much in the way of standards. The good news on it is it either works or doesn't...you can't really phuk anything up, you just try try again.
They really aren't that hard to build though. When you're ready to do it, get a list of the parts together and run it by the folks here. We'll let you know if anything isn't going to match up right and after that it'll be cake.
Originally posted by: Jittos
Or you can buy a Dell; they r so cheap now.
dude, you're getting a Dell
I can build you a comp for the same price as a low end Dell, but mine will be faster, and last you longer
But for non-techie people, I agree that Dell and their warranty/service is an attractive offer.Building your own is incredibly simple. In fact, I'd say that putting a computer together is easier than assembling a TV stand you buy at Wal Mart. The difficulties arrise when you have a problem...if your'e not familiar with computers, the troubleshooting process could consume your sanity. But, I've done 8 systems this year and haven't gotten a bad part yet...most "help, I got a bad mobo" posts are the users fault.
As for where to buy....Newegg is #1 for me. As for what to buy....thats what sites like this are for. Read some reviews...see what product testers are using...it will give you an idea of the compatibility of the parts you are looking at.
Another "it's simple" vote. I've built 3 over the last two years or so, the most recent just a few weeks ago. IMO, the hardest part is getting the floppy drive connected correctly - I always plug the cable in bass-ackwards . Hint: if you boot the computer for the first time and the little green "access" light on the drive stays lit, it's connected incorrectly.
aside from that, the other small diff difficulties have already been pointed out, I think:
-getting all the little connectors from the front of the case (Power, Power LED, harddrive LED, speaker, etc) on correctly is a pain. Doing it wrong won't hurt anything, but the PC may not boot, or some of th lights may not come on.
-Always make sure you're electrically grounded when dealing with CPUs and circuit boards (mainboard & add-in cards). That way you won't fry anything with static electricity.
-be careful putting the heatsink on; a)you don't want to crack the core and b) if you have to use a flathead screwdriver, you don't want to slip & put a gouge in the motherboard. Oh, and make sure the CPU fan is connected or your computer won't last very long
Nate
. Hint: if you boot the computer for the first time and the little green "access" light on the drive stays lit, it's connected incorrectly.aside from that, the other small diff difficulties have already been pointed out, I think:
-getting all the little connectors from the front of the case (Power, Power LED, harddrive LED, speaker, etc) on correctly is a pain. Doing it wrong won't hurt anything, but the PC may not boot, or some of th lights may not come on.
-Always make sure you're electrically grounded when dealing with CPUs and circuit boards (mainboard & add-in cards). That way you won't fry anything with static electricity.
-be careful putting the heatsink on; a)you don't want to crack the core and b) if you have to use a flathead screwdriver, you don't want to slip & put a gouge in the motherboard. Oh, and make sure the CPU fan is connected or your computer won't last very long
Nate
the hardest part for me when building a computer is truning it on for the first time. "is it going to boot, did i get the Hs/F on correct, is the PS pluged into the Mobo correct, is it going to FRY and im out $1700" After the first time you turn it on it is a breze.
You might try checking out this link
http://www17.tomshardware.com/howto/20021102/index.html
It's a little behind the times in regards to the components currently available but it does a pretty good job of explaining most of the basics.
http://www17.tomshardware.com/howto/20021102/index.html
It's a little behind the times in regards to the components currently available but it does a pretty good job of explaining most of the basics.
sandorski
No Lifer
- Oct 10, 1999
- 70,697
- 6,257
- 126
For the first timer, I think the hardest part is in the getting the correct parts and troubleshooting any problems. The parts takes some research and some knowledge of what the various parts do. Troubleshooting can be much trickier, but these days a system will work fine without the need of special steps/drivers and what not. Like others have mentioned though, connecting the case front wires can be a pain, especially if part of those connections include USB ports.
Basically, before you've built a comp, you've probably already upgraded (installing ram, PCI/AGP cards, and optical drives). Maybe even a hard drive.
What's new with building your own is putting hte processor, heatsink, and fan on. That was what was new for me. The rest, putting in cards, ram, hard drives, and optical drives, was all old news.
What's new with building your own is putting hte processor, heatsink, and fan on. That was what was new for me. The rest, putting in cards, ram, hard drives, and optical drives, was all old news.
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