Building a computer

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by phAde, Dec 30, 2007.

  1. phAde

    phAde Private E-2

    Ok, I am wanting to build a new computer, but I don't know really where to start. What I have (as of now) is a case, a monitor, and a power supply. I know that I need a mobo, hard drives, processor, RAM, etc, but I don't know the specifics of what I need. I know some, but not much.

    Iknow you need at least a gig of RAM, SATA drives, and a good processor but that is all I know. Help please?

    Oh, and I am tight on money, so I don't need the latest and the greatest. =]
     
  2. kriscrash4x4

    kriscrash4x4 Private E-2

    i know where your coming from i went through it a couple years ago
    depends what you like to do, id start with the motherboard,
    100 bucks for the board might get what you want,
    not sure how things are now I tried to get a board
    that excepted ram that was most popular.
    look at them all then you'll know what your buying
    if i could do it again i wouldnt buy an amd they dont stand up well
    the pentium 4 cpu cost more but its the only one still going for me
    people talk highly of amd though
     
  3. viper_boy403

    viper_boy403 MajorGeek

    what all do u want to do with it? Are you just going to be using it for basic stuff or do u want to do other things like gaming? I can throw some ideas your way once you let me know :)
     
  4. bellamama_2b

    bellamama_2b Private E-2

    First off: How much do you have to spend?

    Second: What do you already have:
    It is not enought to know what you have, we need to know the specs. of each piece of hardware.

    Third: What you are going to engage in after the build is complete.

    Fourth: Know some terms... This will help you figure out what to buy next. If your case is an ATX formfactor and your psu is ATX then you can buy an mATX or uATX as well as an ATX motherboard. But if you already have an mATX case and psu then an ATX motherboard is not going to work. Also if you have an mATX case and you have an ATX psu things are not exactly going to work out...

    Fifth: Learn how to add up the voltage requirements for all the components that go in your PC. It’s the only way to make sure your computer’s power supply will be big enough. There are some websites that can help you with this. As a start, consider this: a top end CPU will require 65 to 100 watts all by itself. A “hot” graphics card needs nearly as much.

    Sixth: Pick a case with lots of fan ports. A big problem the do-it-yourselfer may face is heat. Currently, builders have gone to three fans, or two if one is a 120mm that can really pull air out of a case. Four isn’t uncommon. If your case doesn't come with a fan in the rear. Make sure it is facing out. You want to pull the hot air out of your chasis (pronounced "CHA-see.")

    Seventh: The I/O plate on the back of the case almost never matches the motherboard you’ll buy. Usually the motherboard comes with one. However, watch out what type of motherboard you buy... if you buy oem it is possible that the rear I/O plate may or may not come with it.

    Eighth: On a typical computer, IDE devices are a floppy drive, medi-drive and the hard drive. But now computers have moved to the way of SATA. Make sure that the compenent match up with the psu and motherboard. If you have board with only one IDE-device connector and you buy two media reader/writers and you don't get a SATA Harddrive you are aslo going to run into problems.

    Ninth: make sure whether or not your psu has a 24-pin connector. Most psu's have a 20+4Pin connector. If you are going with socket 775, which you most likely are, you are going to need a 24-pin connector.

    Tenth: This is simple enough, but one can never be to careful. When choosing your cpu you want to make sure it is compatible with your motherboard. The first thing you should pick out about your computer is what CPU you are going to use, because it determines what motherboard you are going to get, which determines what other components you get.

    Eleventh: If you are going with Intel and socket 775, then you want to see what your motherboard's FSB is. If your motherboard is rated for 800MHz FSB then you aren't going to want to reach for the 1066MHz or the 1333Mhz cpu's. Here are a list of socket 775 cpu's rated for 800MHz or less: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx

    And Lastly: Use Majorgeeks.com to help you build your rig. If you have a question don't worry about asking it. Also Newegg.com has a learning center for people. http://www.newegg.com/Info/KnowledgeBase.aspx
    Also there is other forum based sites on the internet such as http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/default.aspx with people who are all willing to help you.
     
  5. roddinron

    roddinron Corporal

    I was going to build one too, and had pretty much what you have plus a mother board. But, when I started adding everything up, including all the hardware and OS, I came to the conclusion that it was cheaper to just buy a new PC. I bought a nice refurbished (new) dual core gateway from tiger direct with Vista premium 320 gig HD and dual layer burner, a TV card etc. for less than $400 including extra ram and shipping. I just couldn't build it for that and NO hassles. It isn't cutting edge, and I know that some purists may find fault with it, but for the $ I love it and it suits my needs, and is a HUGE improvement over my old one. Do the math, I think you my be surprised how much it costs to build one especially if you need to spend $100 or more just for the OS. But if you just want to do it for the experience, then go for it.
     

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