My First PC

[Duff]

So, I've decided to try and build my own PC. I'm almost finished with college, which means I'll have less use for a portable computer, which makes a PC appealing because PCs are better than laptops, especially for the stuff I do/want to do. I don't know squat when it comes to computer parts, but I have done a little bit of browsing and a small amount of research into the parts I need.

 

My budget is... flexible? I don't really want to do anything over $1000 (the build below is just over $1000). I kinda want to get into PC gaming. I don't know if I'm looking into running Crysis 3 or Battlefield 3 on like, ultra settings. But I would like the graphics to look nice and it to be a quick PC for watching high quality videos, playing games on high settings, etc.

 

My build so far is pretty random. I've been getting ideas on parts from other people's builds. I really hardly know anything about certain parts and what certain little acronyms means and what the smaller specific parts do. So I figured I might as well run it by you guys (whoever still lurks here) and for advice concerning a) the parts I've selected and whether they are compatible at least b) the components and whether I'm getting too high quality of stuff for my needs c) suggestions on where to make price cuts on cheaper stuff without sacrificing a whole lot of performance.

 

So, here it goes, I guess:

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570 Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core ($215)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115233

 

Motherboard: ASUS P8B75-V LGA 1155 Intel B75 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard ($85)

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131835

 

GPU: ASUS GTX760-DC2OC-2GD5 GeForce GTW 760 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP ($259)

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814121775

 

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2x4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) ($77)

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820231455

 

HDD: Western Digital Blue 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s ($70 or $63)

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822236339

or

http://www.amazon.co..._bxgy_pc_text_y

 

PSU: Corsair CX750 Builder Series ATX 80 PLUS ($88)

http://www.amazon.co...74460775&sr=1-6

 

SSD: Samsung 840 Sries 2.5" 120GB SATA III ($109)

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820147188

 

Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Cases, Black Pearl ($104)

http://www.amazon.co...4462044&sr=1-14

 

Also, I didn't do much searching on other websits for components. Just mainly newegg and amazon.

 

Anyways, this is worth a shot. Thanks guys.

 

Oh, and also, more emphasis on maybe lowering the price when considering other components. I don't have a monitor, so I have a feeling investing in one of those will cost a good amount, too.

 

EDIT: Also, if there's any component I'm missing, let me know. I'm not sure if I need a separate CPU cooler or other fans and whatnot.

[Duff]

Well, I've changed my build quite a bit. And now I have an easier questions, since I know asking people to look at an entire build is asking a lot.

 

I won't have a modem right next to me wherever I am living for the next two years. It's downstairs and my computer would be upstairs, and moving the modem is not an option, since I live with other guys and they need it for the TV/cable/other shit downstairs. So, I'll have to get Wireless on my desktop somehow, and I don't know how reliable that is. So I'm wondering how I should do this. Should I buy a wifi adapter (and if so, what are some good ones - i don't want some shitty $15 one that won't do any good), or try something like a bridge, or maybe bridge my old laptop's adapter with my desktop (did something like this when my xbox adapter wasn't compatible with the modem)?

 

Any advice would be appreciated. I'm lost as to where to go from here. No internet on the computer would basically stop me from building one, lol.

 

EDIT: Something like this?

 

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16833704133

 

EDIT 2: Actually, considering 100ft ethernet cables are like, less than $15 apiece, I might just buy one and run it all the way downstairs along the walls to the modem.

[Zpoon]

The build overall is good. No glaring issues I see, that GPU is powerful enough to do high settings on pretty much all games out right now. PSU is more than enough to handle the hardware.

 

Since you're interested in gaming, I would recommend ditching the stock heatsink that comes with the CPU and buying something a bit more beefy. Heatsinks aren't all that expensive and are worth the investment if you're planning on gaming and want to protect your CPU investment. I've had really good performance on my Hyper 212, and it's only +$33. Well worth it.

 

As far as wireless goes. If you have the option of running a hard wire, then I always suggest doing that route. A wired connection is ALWAYS more stable than a wireless. That being said, it's easy to buy a PCIe wireless NIC and have it in your PC just in-case your situation changes. I wouldn't recommend bridging via your laptop or other device as you will usually get worse performance than a good NIC, and it's nice not needing your laptop to connect to the internet.

 

The NIC you linked to is a good choice.

[brunokiller]

Don't forget to buy a decent gaming mouse ;)

[Sbrideau]

What's with you and gaming mice? Depends on what they do with their computer. Although this does look like a gaming computer.

[Duff]

The build overall is good. No glaring issues I see, that GPU is powerful enough to do high settings on pretty much all games out right now. PSU is more than enough to handle the hardware.

 

Since you're interested in gaming, I would recommend ditching the stock heatsink that comes with the CPU and buying something a bit more beefy. Heatsinks aren't all that expensive and are worth the investment if you're planning on gaming and want to protect your CPU investment. I've had really good performance on my Hyper 212, and it's only +$33. Well worth it.

 

As far as wireless goes. If you have the option of running a hard wire, then I always suggest doing that route. A wired connection is ALWAYS more stable than a wireless. That being said, it's easy to buy a PCIe wireless NIC and have it in your PC just in-case your situation changes. I wouldn't recommend bridging via your laptop or other device as you will usually get worse performance than a good NIC, and it's nice not needing your laptop to connect to the internet.

 

The NIC you linked to is a good choice.

 

I've changed my build to have a CPU with a LGA 1150 socket. Do you have any recommendations?

 

Thanks for the feedback as well. :)

 

@bruno: I'll probably save a mouse and keyboard for Christmas time, haha.

 

EDIT: Is it just me or do heatsinks compatible with LGA 1150 sockets not exist? I can't find any.

[Sbrideau]

That socket is probably too new to have many heatsinks yet. I'd probably check on forums to see whether people tried the specific one you want.

[Zpoon]

The Hyper 212 EVO supports the 1150 socket since the 1155 and the 1150 share the same mounting bracket holes. That's also true for all "1155-compatible" heatsinks.

[Duff]

The Hyper 212 EVO supports the 1150 socket since the 1155 and the 1150 share the same mounting bracket holes. That's also true for all "1155-compatible" heatsinks.

 

Alright. I had done a bit of searching on if that was actually the case. Seems like the majority of people say that, so I'm going to go with it. It's kinda dumb that they don't have it officially stated anywhere (or if it is, I can't find it).

 

Going to place my order tonight. Pretty nervous since it's the most expensive thing I will have bought to date (xbox 360 slim was the previous record holder). I'll definitely take a few pictures of it before, during, and after the building process. I'll post some of them here for fun.

 

LET'S PRAY FOR NO DOA OR GENERALLY DEFECTIVE PARTS!!!

 

EDIT: Placed the order. Then realized I should probably buy some thermal paste, so bought that too in a separate order because it was too late. Most if not all of the stuff should get here by late next week.

[Duff]

Here's this. You can see what I finally decided to buy. I think everything is compatible! At least I hope so, cause there's no going back now, haha.

 

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=17496049

[shasta_sms]

Looks fine, however if you do not have an OS on standby you may want to purchase one.

 

I remember when I build my first computer. It was a long night, making sure the board and CPU were good before I installed them into the case and then putting everything into the racks, realizing I had forgotten to place one grounding point into the case. So I had to pull out the Motherboard out again. But the first build is the slowest.

 

Also Protip: do not install the factory fan on the CPU at all just to take it off and install the 3rd party one you are going to do. When applying the silver coating to the CPU I would just suggest wrapping your pinky in some plastic (which will be everywhere at this time) and apply a small pea of the silver onto your make shift glove and carefully apply it.

[Sbrideau]

Also Protip: do not install the factory fan on the CPU at all just to take it off and install the 3rd party one you are going to do. When applying the silver coating to the CPU I would just suggest wrapping your pinky in some plastic (which will be everywhere at this time) and apply a small pea of the silver onto your make shift glove and carefully apply it.

 

That's one of the worst ways as it'll still make a lot of bubbles this way. Better to just do either the pea or the rice spot directly on the CPU and putting the heatsink on top. Usually it spreads it evenly.

[Duff]

I've got an OS on order from Amazon. 10 dollars cheaper than newegg, heh.

 

So someone on another forum told me the case I chose was pretty outdated (8 years) even though I saw tons of people still buying it and saying it was good.

 

"I would look at a Corsair 200R or CM HAF912 for the case. The original 300 is like 8 years old now, and it really shows in the hard drive and power supply mounting. Not a very generous fan compliment for the money either."

 

Not sure what he meant by the last part. Either the fans in the case aren't very good, or he didn't like my choice of aftermarket CPU fan. So, I decided to eat the restocking fee once I get the case and send it back. Ordered the other popular case, the COOLER MASTER HAF series RC-912-KKN1 Black SECC/ ABS Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233

 

When I get all the parts, I'll probably sit down for a good part of the day and take my time putting it together. Going to do an external build because I see that a lot of people do them to make sure parts are not dead. I'll definitely have my laptop to look at youtube videos on putting it together, haha. Already watched the newegg ones. Probably going to go back to those. But I'll apply the thermal paste using the pea method and just letting the heatsink spread it. I don't plan on overclocking (really have no idea what it is and if I would want to do it) and apparently a few air bubbles aren't too bad if you're never going to overclock.

[Duff]

 

Well, here's most of the stuff aside from the OS. The box I received everything in except the case was pretty banged up unfortunately, and the processor box is kinda beat up as well. I'm hoping the rough transit didn't screw up any of my parts. Cause that would make me angry.

 

Here's a public wishlist with everything I bought (save for OS, thermal paste, and replace case with case in previous post).

 

http://secure.newegg...Number=17496049

 

Honestly, I'm just really scared right now to start building it because I have a feeling I'm going to be one of those unlucky people who get broken parts and have to wait weeks on end to get the RMA processed and get new parts. I'd freak out if something didn't work on the way. Not knowing much about this stuff, I'd be completely lost as to what might be broken and why.

 

Anyways, can't start tonight. Not enough time. I'll post more pictures as the process goes.

 

Still need to find something to use as my monitor besides my 22" LCD tv. Also, I have to figure out this internet connection issue. Still debating on ethernet cable vs. wireless card. I don't know if a 200ft ethernet cable is long enough for my house up at school.

 

I'll stop jabbering now.

[Sbrideau]

This is why I usually buy on NCIX with a price match with Newegg. Better service (in case of RMA) and much faster shipping.

[Duff]

Fuuuuuuuuuuuck. Just realized my motherboard is a microATX. My case supports it, but I have no clue if all my parts will fit on it. So frustrated right now. Because I can't return it for a refund either. So either it will work with my stuff, or that's $170 wasted plus another $200 for a different full sized motherboard.

 

This first build has gone terribly wrong. Could any of you give me any feedback about whether my components will still fit on the board? I'm only running one gpu, which means I don't need that SLI stuff, whatever that is.

 

thanks guys

[Sbrideau]

Most stuff that fit with ATX will fit with MicroATX, the only limitations usually is less options on the MicroATX like just one PCI-e, or no integrated graphics, or things like that. My budget build from 5 years ago has a MicroATX and the rest is all the same as a normal ATX board. (and yes it I would've gone ATX if it wasn't a budget build in that time).

[Duff]

Sorry it took so long to get these posted. Wasn't in too big of a rush. Spent an entire night building it (pulled an all-nighter). Everything kept me pretty interested until installing Windows and the updates, which was a lot of just sitting around.

 

Motherboard with CPU. The microATX was fine in the end. Glad that ended up working out.

 

 

Did an external build to make sure things worked. Fortunately, had no hiccups!

 

 

Final product of inside of the case apart from all the wires i wired through the back.

 

 

Haven't been able to utilize this computer much yet. But I'm able to watch YouTube videos in 720p and 1080p, watch twitch streams flawlessly, and Smite runs smoothly, too. Hooray!

[brunokiller]

Congrats, but no gaming mouse? :(

[Duff]

I'll ask for one for Christmas (with a nice keyboard as well). ;)