Building A New Machine From Parts...questions!

I've never posted in the hardware area of Major Geeks, and I'm still using the old Dell computer running XP Service Pack 3 as when I first signed up… so that was a good long time ago. I built Heathkits as a kid and have been involved in all sorts of electron herding ever since then, including building a broadcast studio back in the 1980s in the fifth largest market in the country.

I know that I'm capable of building a machine, but I'm also more than capable of taking good advice from people who really know the current state of computer hardware. I'd like to build something fast (doesn't everybody) and reliable (doesn't everybody) so I’m looking for any advice you would have, including which cases, motherboards, processors, drives, etc. I'm thinking of making the solid-state boot drive move, but I will listen to anything you have to say about known issues with doing so. Should I buy Win 10, or is there something to be gained by running an alternative OS? What would I lose by doing so? How about video? A card or an embedded set on the motherboard? Same for wifi.

I would like to accomplish this sometime in the next 3 months and to start accumulating parts as soon as possible, so if you have ideas please share them.

Is there a thread here with tutorials for this kind of project? Thank you!!

 

Hopefully someone will point you in the right direction....in the meantime I bet there are many videos on YouTube about the process.
I would always go for Windows 10, and a reasonable Video (Graphics) Card, I use a WiFi dongle on my desktop PCs.

 

Post your present and future use. Music editing, gaming, CAD or something else directly affects the parts you need. Also what resolution you plan to run, how much space you need for games, programs and data.

 

How?

 

I'm not sure what you mean by "how."

I am planning to use a solid state drive to hold the OS and programs that must be on the boot drive, and use a conventional hard disk for storage.

I'm not a gamer. I do plan on doing some voice editing, as I occasionally do voice work.

I may cut the cable this spring and turn to services like Netflix and Hulu, so I want a good video source that I can use to drive my flat screen Samsung. It is not itself a "smart TV." That will come in the future.

My current ISP is Comcast (no Fios...my town nixed that service) at a reasonable speed. If I were going to keep using this machine indefinitely, I would start a RAM diag and maybe buy some new sticks, but that seems pointless considering the age of the unit.

I realize that Newegg and Youtube could give advice, but I was looking for what you folks, the hardware users..are thinking about versus what those other sources might say. I always feel an end user can provide a lot of value in a situation like this.

Any specific guidance on cases, boards, cards...and anything to avoid would be valuable.

Thanks!

 

My personal experience has me building with Asus TUF motherboards, Intel CPU, Samsung SSD (or NVME), Corsair RAM (stability beats speed), Corsair water cpu cooling, Corsair power supply (go big and high quality so you have no worries), water cooled graphics card either nVidia or AMD. Water cooling demands a large or open case, make sure it all fits!
This makes a very quiet, stable system which will last a LONG time and not crash in summer heat. Initial cost is offset by longevity. This may or may not be what you need.

 

You have definitely given me some food for thought. I like the idea of quiet...the CPU fan drives me nuts...

I will have to price out those pieces.

 

Knowing your budget would help a lot too.

 

When all is said and done, I'd like to spend under $1,500 for the machine, and find a good price for the OS if possible. I currently use Office too, so if I were to purchase MS 10 and Office, hopefully I could save some there as well.

 

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME B350-PLUS ATX AM4 Motherboard
RAM: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
I didn't choose a HDD as everyone has their own preference.
Case: Corsair - Carbide 400C ATX Mid Tower Case
PSU: Corsair - RMx 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX
OS: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit
Office:
https://cdn.pcpartpicker.com/static/forever/images/product/1c86015d5845c0834934941b80896939.256p.jpg
Microsoft - Office Home and Student 2016 Software

This come to $979.10 after mail in rebates. I didn't pick things That you may already have like monitor, mouse, keyboard etc. Anyway does this look like what you have in mind? I love doing these.

 

I like it. I'd like to re-shuffle this a little.

Intel is touting an acceleration technology now, called Optane. It would be paired with a 1-T HDD. What would that look like, with 8 gigs of ram and a board that can use the Optane, along with a fast new Intel CPU?
How about a case designed for a quiet water cooled system and room for a total of three bays to accommodate the two old hard drives I would be accessing for files?
Blu ray and DVD optical?
Four USB ports in the front, same in back?
Modular power supply that lets everything run on about an 80% load of rated wattage?

Any ideas on these specifics?

 

That should be a fun challenge. Not sure I can come in under budget but I'll give it a try. I'm not familiar with Optane but I'll do my research.

 

Thanks for mentioning Optane. I'd never heard of it before but think I can make that happen for you. I might get one for my computer. My motherboard supports it.

 

I'll throw my 2 cents in the ring. I've built a bunch and tinkered a bunch. We all have our go-to brands, and mine would be Gigabyte for motherboards, Intel for processors/chipsets, g-skill for RAM. I've also used a Samsung SSD in my newest build and an older laptop and I love it

 

Thanks for all of the great comments and guidance. I will be sure to post back when I make my selections!

 

I'm pretty much with DOA on this one. I have this habit of building over time, and looking for the best deals on parts. I think the current one should last quite a while.

 

I will post back when I have made my final selections.