How easy is it to build a PC?

Robisere

Mista_C wrote: »

Some boards use nylon spacers as well as the stand-offs/posts and incorrect positioning/leaving them out have been the source of many a strange symptom in the past. These things...

http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04858_nylon_spacers.jpg

They're designed to stop contact between solder joints and the case as well as provide support in areas that have no brass stand-offs. They were very common a few years back but less so these days I've found.

I had forgotten those!:o
Maybe banished them from my mind, they were horrible things.:mad: I think the point I was trying to make, was that information should be correct and as technically accurate as possible, especially for a Newbie PC builder.

scheming_gypsy

Robisere wrote: »

I think the point I was trying to make, was that information should be correct and as technically accurate as possible, especially for a Newbie PC builder.

The problem with being technically accurate is that a newbie PC builder will open the case, pull out the bag of screws and think "hmmm, some bits of plastic".
Although from '91 to about '99 I built PC's at work, I still work in IT but I've never called them standoffs and only heard them called standoffs in your post. I can't actually think what I've called them

rmg1

I remember calling them "What the hell are these for???"

Pikeyp

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

Although from '91 to about '99 I built PC's at work, I still work in IT but I've never called them standoffs and only heard them called standoffs in your post.

I was a PCB designer for 20 odd years (in a previous life ... !!) and the term 'standoffs' I can definitely remember from back then!

marvell-kid

Also I forgot to ask?
Will you need a keyboard, mouse, monitor, extra monitor (I like to dual screen), OS, Wifi Card, Blu ray/DVD drive?

To save a little bit of money I would go for AMD. But thats my preferance and others will argue that Intel is better than AMD and nVidia is better than ATI.

As for SSD, I have a 64GB one and its great. But wish I had spent a little more on it and gone for the 128GB as I only have enough room for OS and my most used Programs. I use it with a 1TB HDD

Mr_Toad

Some very good advice so far.

I've built every PC I've ever owned, it can be fun and very rewarding. So far I've never had a failure but that's more luck than judgement. I know people who have been reduced to tears when things don't go well.

Are you confident that if it doesn't work you can identify the part causing the problem? Then you have to return it and wait for a replacement. If it goes badly this can be a long and painful process.

There's no guarantee that all the bits you buy will work together. It's fairly rare but this fact alone can make it difficult to prove. I have a friend who bought an OEM (Other Equipment Manufacturer) graphics card and it would not work in his motherboard. He returned it and they tested it and it worked fine for them so they sent it back. It worked fine in my PC but simply refused to work in his. He was just unlucky with his choice. He did get it sorted but it took weeks of hassle. He ended up buying the more expensive NVidia version of the same card which wiped out much of the savings he was making by doing it himself.

When you say you're going to save £300 are you comparing like for like at component level? An OEM graphics card might be the same on paper and cheaper than a retail one but not everything is equal.

When I last built a PC I got the spec for a commercial PC of the build I wanted and priced the same parts up. It was more expensive to buy the parts than to by the built PC.

You can save money by using similar, cheaper OEM parts but £300 is a *lot* of money. CAn you tell us how you worked this out?

I'm not trying to put you off, I think everyone should try it but you need to be aware that you're pretty much on your own if it goes wrong and that can be frustrating.

I have a shed load of spare parts, I could probably build half a dozen PCs. This means that I have spare motherboards, CPUs, disks and graphics cards that I can try if I think something is faulty.

Lil306

Short post as I'm getting ready for work. All PC builds will generally follow the same structure for gaming

- Decent CPU
- High end graphics card + PSU to power them
- Really fast HDD (ssd preferably for read speeds)
- RAM (to run Windows and page files to memory)

There's no real difference between a 500 build and 10,000 build. It just gives you greater headroom to build a higher end PC. Stay away from AMD unless you're on a real budget. It's not as fast as Intel Sandybridge CPUs. It does the job however. I'll create a more thorough post when I return home

£1000 gaming PC
i2500k - 160
Vertex SSD 60gb - 100
Case - 50
PSU - 70
GTX560O/C - 200
M/B - P67 or Z68 - 150
Windows 7 - 110
RAM (4GB) - 20
CPU Cooler - 50 (or 100 for water cooled H100)
Optical Drive - 15
Sound Card - (optional) - +100-200
Large HDD - 100

£3000 gaming PC
i2700k CPU
GTX590
180GB SSD(Vertex 3)
2TB HDD
Optical Drive
1200w PSU
8 GB RAM (Since it makes way for more)
Windows 7
Sound Card
z68 motherboard

etc, etc,

Building PC's is baby stuff when you've done one of them. The spacers are also there to stop the motherboard from shorting out on the surface as they're non conductive. So use them

Mista_C

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

The problem with being technically accurate is that a newbie PC builder will open the case, pull out the bag of screws and think "hmmm, some bits of plastic".
Although from '91 to about '99 I built PC's at work, I still work in IT but I've never called them standoffs and only heard them called standoffs in your post. I can't actually think what I've called them

It seems to vary. I've heard them called stand-offs, posts, pillars, struts, and a handful of other names. Those and bezels, front-plates, face-plates, bay covers, (to cover the holes in the fronts) seem to have different names with different people.

scheming_gypsy

even stretches to the computer itself.... PC, computer, desktop, tower, CPU, hard drive, base unit, base station.


they're the electronic version of 'bread rolls'

Robisere

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

The problem with being technically accurate is that a newbie PC builder will open the case, pull out the bag of screws and think "hmmm, some bits of plastic".
Although from '91 to about '99 I built PC's at work, I still work in IT but I've never called them standoffs and only heard them called standoffs in your post. I can't actually think what I've called them

They are called standoffs in the Case and Motherboard manuals used in every build I have ever made. I have no doubt of your IT experience, compared to which I am an experienced amateur. I simply go by the fact that is what I have seen them named as. In the manuals, which I always read. Just as I did when I was an Aircraft technician and a Motor Engineer.

If inexperienced builders begin by knowing the correct names of components, they will be aware of descriptive nomenclature in the manuals and/or Guides that they should read before starting a first build. I have no answer to your memory problem, I'm afraid.