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Has anyone built there own Gaming PC?
- Thread starter mep42
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I really am looking for something that sort of tells me how to do it, I googled it but all I cam up with was websites that try and sell books about it, is there anywhere on the web that goes through all of the steps?
Plenty of stuff turned up on Google.
Any chance you could just hit the local library for a book? Research for components is going to have to be done online for benchmarks and feature sets.
It's a very easy process.
1) Research and buy all the components; motherboard, hard drives, optical drives, CPU, ram, graphics card and an appropriate case and PSU.
2) Put the CPU into the motherboard, place the fan on top
3) Open the case, drop in motherboard spacers (these come with the motherboard). Place the motherboard in.
4) add the ram.
5) add the optical and hard drives. Sata cables are very small and easy to connect up (compared to the IDE predecessors, bleh!)
6) drop in the power supply.
7) add the graphics card.
7.5) add in any extra cards (wifi, etc)
8) connect the power cables to the HDD, the optical drive and anything else that needs a power source.
8.5) connect the front panel wires to the motherboard. Always the most annoying part
you'll wish for chopstick fingers.
9) put the case together, attach the power lead and there you go!
I built 2 computers back in 1999 when I did work experience in a computer shop. Without ever going back into a PC I built a new PC for my sister and almost nothing has changed, it's a bit easier with smaller cables but it's very very easy to do. I'm surprised more people don't build their own systems. You can make them quieter running, more powerful and much more customised than shop bought computers.
1) Research and buy all the components; motherboard, hard drives, optical drives, CPU, ram, graphics card and an appropriate case and PSU.
2) Put the CPU into the motherboard, place the fan on top
3) Open the case, drop in motherboard spacers (these come with the motherboard). Place the motherboard in.
4) add the ram.
5) add the optical and hard drives. Sata cables are very small and easy to connect up (compared to the IDE predecessors, bleh!)
6) drop in the power supply.
7) add the graphics card.
7.5) add in any extra cards (wifi, etc)
8) connect the power cables to the HDD, the optical drive and anything else that needs a power source.
8.5) connect the front panel wires to the motherboard. Always the most annoying part
you'll wish for chopstick fingers.9) put the case together, attach the power lead and there you go!
I built 2 computers back in 1999 when I did work experience in a computer shop. Without ever going back into a PC I built a new PC for my sister and almost nothing has changed, it's a bit easier with smaller cables but it's very very easy to do. I'm surprised more people don't build their own systems. You can make them quieter running, more powerful and much more customised than shop bought computers.
It really is very simple. I have built quite a few gaming PCs. I actually sold one to pay for the MacBook that I'm using right now
On another note, one thing that could give you an idea of where to start is look at the specs of an actual gaming PC like from Alienware, Dell, or someone else (I like Alienware) and then hit sites like Egghead, Pricewatch, etc for the parts. OEM parts are ok.
Your basics are:
As far as brands, experience and talking with others who have done this is your best source for brand names.
Myself I like Asus motherboards. Motherboards pay close attention to what it has to offer as far as onboard stuff. Some have everything and all you gotta add is Ram, these don't make good gaming rigs as the video usually isn't that great. Intel and AMD based boards are unique so make sure you buy the right motherboard to go with the chip your buying. Also, make sure you buy the right socket type. Same goes with the CPU Fan, get the right fan for the right CPU. If you have a store like Microcenter or Frys they can also help you by explaining more things in detail.
Video cards basically your main concern is the chip type (NVidia/ATI) Make sure when you buy your video card, the type slot (AGP/PCI-E, etc) matches what your motherboard can have. If your looking SLI, make sure the video card AND the motherboard support SLI.
The case needs to be reasonable compared to the size of your system. Fans are pretty generic, power supplies your main concern is watts, 600w is pretty decent.
Don't EVEN try watercooling until your extremely comfortable with building systems as one slip up can ruin everything you've spent your money on.
I have built many systems including watercooled systems. It's not that hard and when your parts arrive in the mail, from the first system I bought until the last one I still get like a little boy on xmas going through the fresh new parts.
Once you get them, it's pretty standard, they only go in one way. Someone listed some steps above.
Take your time, don't rush into it. DO NOT power it on until you put a CPU Fan on the chip or you will hate yourself. It only takes a few secs to burn up a chip.
Your basics are:
- Motherboard
- CPU
- CPU Fan
- Ram
- Video cards (Double check the slot type, ie., AGP, PCI-E, etc)
- Sound (most motherboards have on board sound)
- Network (most motherboards have on board gigabit adapters)
- Case (with adequate case fans some pulling clean air in, others used for exhaust to push hot air out)
- Power Supply
- Harddrive
- CDROM
- I wouldn't worry about a floppy but they are very cheap you can get one if you feel you need to.
As far as brands, experience and talking with others who have done this is your best source for brand names.
Myself I like Asus motherboards. Motherboards pay close attention to what it has to offer as far as onboard stuff. Some have everything and all you gotta add is Ram, these don't make good gaming rigs as the video usually isn't that great. Intel and AMD based boards are unique so make sure you buy the right motherboard to go with the chip your buying. Also, make sure you buy the right socket type. Same goes with the CPU Fan, get the right fan for the right CPU. If you have a store like Microcenter or Frys they can also help you by explaining more things in detail.
Video cards basically your main concern is the chip type (NVidia/ATI) Make sure when you buy your video card, the type slot (AGP/PCI-E, etc) matches what your motherboard can have. If your looking SLI, make sure the video card AND the motherboard support SLI.
The case needs to be reasonable compared to the size of your system. Fans are pretty generic, power supplies your main concern is watts, 600w is pretty decent.
Don't EVEN try watercooling until your extremely comfortable with building systems as one slip up can ruin everything you've spent your money on.
I have built many systems including watercooled systems. It's not that hard and when your parts arrive in the mail, from the first system I bought until the last one I still get like a little boy on xmas going through the fresh new parts.
Once you get them, it's pretty standard, they only go in one way. Someone listed some steps above.
Take your time, don't rush into it. DO NOT power it on until you put a CPU Fan on the chip or you will hate yourself. It only takes a few secs to burn up a chip.
Yep, I have built many. Started building my own back in the '90s. The last one I built was what caused me to switch to Macs.
Rich 
Rich
Yep, I have built many. Started building my own back in the '90s. The last one I built was what caused me to switch to Macs.
Rich
The last one I built is what made me switch away from Macs
. But then again I want a gaming system and something I can upgrade that isn't needlessly overpriced. But that's another thread for another day!Look it up on youtube
The only hard part is screwing the motherboard onto the case, the screws are small and in tight places, and almost always the screw holes dont line up perfectly with the case holes. A magnetic screw driver would make the process a million times easier.
All parts can only put in one way: the right way. If you possess the basic intelligence to match shapes to shapes then you can put together a computer.
Heres a tip: Plug the CPU stuff and RAM into the motherboard before putting it in the case, it will make your life a lot easier. You can also plug in the case wires for the power button and lights before putting it in the case if the wires are long enough, you might have to lay the MB on top of the case.
The only hard part is screwing the motherboard onto the case, the screws are small and in tight places, and almost always the screw holes dont line up perfectly with the case holes. A magnetic screw driver would make the process a million times easier.
All parts can only put in one way: the right way. If you possess the basic intelligence to match shapes to shapes then you can put together a computer.
Heres a tip: Plug the CPU stuff and RAM into the motherboard before putting it in the case, it will make your life a lot easier. You can also plug in the case wires for the power button and lights before putting it in the case if the wires are long enough, you might have to lay the MB on top of the case.
Modern CPUs can be run without heatsinks, they just throttle themselves down to extremely low levels but are still safe. Its virtually impossible to melt a CPU because of all the protection put in place by the motherboard and the CPU itself. But theres no point in turning on the computer until after absolutely everything is plugged in anyways.