Building Your Own Computer

Off Topic
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Does anyone here have any experience with building their own computer? To become proficient at building computers for my own use is a goal of mine (on my list of things I want to do…don’t ask)

I have looked on the internet but wanted to know if anyone here has their own favorite site for providing information on how to build a computer. Also, what is the prefered way of getting parts (provider/method)? None of my friends know anything about this and look at me like I am crazy and pat me on the head when I bring it up. I was hoping that someone here could help me with this.
Thanks

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This is very easy in today’s world of computers. The hardest part is really just deciding what components you want, and what chipset (Intel, AMD, etc.). You can get the parts at any computer store, just check your local pages. If you have an old computer that you don’t mind screwing up, I would take it apart and look around inside, figure out what goes were.

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I would start with the forums here:

I have been building my own computers for years, and have built a few servers for businesses as well.

Feel free to ask questions.

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Buy a book on A+ certficiation. This will teach you computer basics and explain simple networking chores. The biggest problem today with building your own computer is that you can buy one cheaper than you can build on Dell’s and HP/Compacs are as low as $299.00. If you have any more questions PM and I’ll send you some info.

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all ur parts u can get there, its not that hard.
if u got a monitor and keyboard/mouse already though i reccomend getting that new mini mac

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Actually im a computer consultant so maybe I can help here!

Building computers can be an expensive hobby… but… if you want to learn fast and have fun… Try looking for “Computer Fairs” in your region or county. That is the best thing you can do. The parts there are often cheap and OEM (out of retail packaging)

Its pretty easy really to build your own system… ya need:

ATX case
ATX Power Supply (I reocmmend atleast 400watts)
Motherboard (Which will require a certain ram)
RAM to go withj that motherboard
Processor Chip that goes with the motherboard (Ex. 3.0ghz Intel P4 chip)
Video Card (depends on your needs and budget)
Floppy drive
CD Drive.

Thats teh minimum. Of course theres extras. Ya basically just screw the mobo into the case. Then read the mobo manual… follow most their instructions, plug in the cables the right way… and… voila… it SHOULD turn on properly when you press the power button :slight_smile:

Hope I help a lil

T-Islander

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Deffenently newegg.com like Xen said.

One of the easiest ways to learn to build a computer is to take a working one apart, and put it back together. Hopefully after you are done it still works!

Motherboard
Processor (AMD all the way for me)
Memory
Videocard
Harddrive
CD-Rom
Floppy
Monitor
Mouse
Keyboard

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It’s not that hard. Consult an A+ book then order a barebones system from newegg.com they have some of the best prices.

A lot of motherboards have built in graphics cards so you can skip that initially. I don’t have a floppy on my system so you can skip that also.

9

Depends on your geek factor.

If you really want to geek out and know entirely too much about your new found hobby.

try:
arstechnica.com, anandtech.com, hothardware.com, tomshardware.com

ArsTechnica does very good features on what you should buy for which purpose, including links to product searches.

As far as putting the whole durn thing together. Take a kit, like what is delineated here:

Read the instructions on all of the parts before touching anything and then read them again as you assemble the computer.

Voila!

Extra geek bonus: Download a copy of SuSE or Mandrake Linux and install it side-by-side with WindersXP.

If you have any questions you can PM me.

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I bought the parts for my last computer on newegg.com.

I could have put together a computer for $150 if I had wanted. They’ve got good deals, etc…

The most important thing is choosing a motherboard. Do you want AGP (cheaper) or PCI-E? Also make sure it has enough USB, Firewire, etc ports. Decide if you want audio/vidio on the motherboard (see below). Also make sure the mobo can accomodate the desired number of drives, and amount of memory. It should have SCSI, SATA, and/or ATA bus slots, depending on the drive you buy (see below).

Choose the cheapest graphics card that fits your needs. If you don’t do gaming, and don’t do graphics programming, likely the bottom of the line NVIDIA or ATI card will work great.
If you have an AGP motherboard, the graphics card will need to fit into the AGP slot. PCI-E mobo, you need a PCI-E graphics card.
If you really have no graphics applications, even the motherboard graphics may be good enough, and they’re cheaper.

The on-board (meaning on the motherboard) audio is usually good enough for most people, but you can get a really good audio card for not too much money.

Make sure the hard drive is big enough for your storage requirements. You might want to have two or three hard drives depending on your needs, but most people have just one. SCSI are currently the fastest/most expensive, but SATA is capable of being faster. ATA/IDE drives are decent, and what most people have in their computer today.

The motherboard will have a memory speed compatibility such as 333/400 or 533 (this is the Mhz at which the memory operates). Make sure you buy the compatible memory! It won’t work if your motherboard is 333 and your buy pc100 ram.

I prefer NVIDIA and AMD parts, but ATI and Intel, and many other manufactureres make high quality parts.

Sorry, I don’t have a website off the top of my head for how to actually put these things together. Hopefully one of the ones above did something for you. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

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I appreciate the prompt replies…yeah I probably have the potential to “geek out” as it was so charmingly put. I will get an A+ and read read read. I have a 2 and a half year old Dell laptop that annoys the crap out of me. It is actually the inspiration behind my desire to build my own computer (see…Dell is good for something!)
I don’t do any gaming…Ihave a PS2 for that. So I don’t need any fancy sound cards or graphics cards beyond what is typical. I only use my computer for internet browsing, storing music, and microsoft word.

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ah…I just looked at newegg.com
I think I have found something very very addictive. I have another question though. All of the cases say “USB and audio” front ports…somebody will probably kill me for asking this but what about the ethernet port for a LAN or multiple USB ports for all of your crap like PDA’s, printers, i-pods, etc??? HOw do you include these into your computer when building your own?

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These are usually accessible from the back of the case. It’s just convenient sometimes to have a USB port or an audio port at the front of your computer. The others come directly off of your motherboard.

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Most of your ports (such as additional USB, LAN, printers, etc) are actually on the motherboard. Those ports on the motherboard actually stick out the back of the computer, though it may look like it’s actually integrated into the case. Look at some motherboard pics (from the side) and you’ll see all the ports that you’re curious about.

Also, you can buy network cards if your mobo doesn’t have an integrated LAN port, but it’s pretty dificult to find one without the it nowadays.

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For thous of you who like to see what you are buying a good place is to go to Fry’s electronic stores. You can also ask an clerk to help you out with what you will need and will ask you what you want and what you already have.

You will not need a 64bit processor motherboard combo for what you said you will use this for. And yes please stick to AMD processors. They are the way to go.

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[quote]Sifu wrote:
It’s not that hard. Consult an A+ book then order a barebones system from newegg.com they have some of the best prices.

A lot of motherboards have built in graphics cards so you can skip that initially. I don’t have a floppy on my system so you can skip that also.[/quote]

I definetely wouldn’t buy a motherboard with all the the video, sound, etc… built on to the board because if that component goes out then you’ll have to either replace the board or buy a video card anyway…

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I tell you what, putting a rig together can be somewhat addictive. Its when you start getting into custom jobs where you can really lose a lot of time into…and money. Once you begin on the road of overclocking, lighting, etc (esp OCing), you never turn back.

Next thing you know you’re putting water cooling systems in your computer, giving your ATX case a cool mirror paint job and adding lighting systems…oh gosh…

By then you’ll have reached the goal of either hero or super geek…depends on who’s asking.

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Eh, you don’t need a book, tons of resources online. First you have to set your budget and also what it is that you will be using the computer for (which leads into how hardcore you need/want it to be).

Like others say, building your own can be more or less expensive depending on what/how you build and from what perspective you look at it. Dell sells cheap computers, but that’s what you get: cheap. Alienwares on the other hand sells $$$ computers but they are high quality. Get the drift?

As for building your own, I think there are a few main motivations behind it: 1) allocating the power and money where you NEED it, i.e. if you are to do high computations, you’ll need loads of RAM but don’t need a $$$ sound card, if you do a lot of CAD work, a nice monitor is nice, etc. 2) aesthetics, the number of case choices out there are ridiculous along with the mods 3) intrinsic value.

That said, some of the places I like are:

www.pricewatch.com

www.frozencpu.com ($$$ but neat)
http://www.voyeurmods.com/ (also $$$)
(above are for purchasing parts)

For research, check out:

(do some search on them to find articles on building your own, anandtech runs a good article every now and then building your new rig for a good price with current technology, also check out the forums especially tomshwardware (community), it has excellent guides and reviews)

And of course the typical sites like:

Good luck.

IronHell

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hell…

“Build a PC with the Best Bang for the Buck”

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Oh, and exercise caution when buying parts online, especially from pricewatch.com’s vendors… call in and ask if you have ANY doubt/questions, ask if the part is refurbished, opened, OEM, etc. don’t rely on the pictures they show.

another couple of places to check out are:

and

I hesitate to put ebay on here… but that IS an option… sort of