Build moi a PC!

kahf1_01

ok ok, cool off. dont be so selfish ;p

I've made a new thread, these guys are the best tech heads in the country, so dw, we'll get some good ideas

Fluffy88

kahf1_01 wrote: »

ok ok, cool off. dont be so selfish ;p

I've made a new thread, these guys are the best tech heads in the country, so dw, we'll get some good ideas

Keep talking like that and no doubt you will get the best help that they can give :P

Tar.Aldarion

got the stuff at 8am, now to find out what screwdrivers you need to make a pc :P

deconduo

You usually just need a standard Philips head one. I have a long narrow one which does the job handy. Great for getting at awkward parts, looks a bit like this:
http://s.shld.net/is/image/Sears/00991394000?hei=600&wid=600&op_sharpen=1

Tar.Aldarion

thanks, should be some around!
magnetic wont hurt anything i take it

deconduo

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

thanks, should be some around!
magnetic wont hurt anything i take it

Yeah mine's magnetic and has never done any harm. Just dont go poking it at important parts :P Stick with the screws.

Dublin_Gunner

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

got the stuff at 8am, now to find out what screwdrivers you need to make a pc :P

If you got a decent case, none

(well, apart from having to screw the mobo down in most - still the most silly archaic way of mounting a board. Though I use thumb screws for that )

Tar.Aldarion

think i jut need ones for the mobo and cooler, do you stick a screw-in cooler and cpu on before putting a mobo into a case? /googles

deconduo

This is the way I do it:

-Put PSU, Hard drives, DVD drive in case.
-RAM on motherboard
-CPU on motherboard
-Cooler on motherboard.

Connect to PSU and test to see if it posts with that much.

-Put motherboard in case.
-Attach GPU
-Wire up everything and test again.
-Cable management.

Tar.Aldarion

Thanks, I'll follow that!


what is this 41e vistaprint voucher i got lol

Dublin_Gunner

deconduo wrote: »

This is the way I do it:

-Put PSU, Hard drives, DVD drive in case.
-RAM on motherboard
-CPU on motherboard
-Cooler on motherboard.

Connect to PSU and test to see if it posts with that much.

-Put motherboard in case.
-Attach GPU
-Wire up everything and test again.
-Cable management.

Depening on the case, the drives could hamper getting the mobo in there.

I always, without fail, install the mobo first.

Hopefully your case will have a hole allowing access to the rear of the motherboard's CPU socket - this will mean you can install the motherboard first, then your cooler.

My way of doing it:

1. Mobo into case
2. CPU into mobo
3. CPU cooler on
4. Ram
5. PSU
6. Drives
7. GPU

Then hook up all power and data connections, allowing you to keep the cables tidy.

deconduo

Dublin_Gunner wrote: »

Depening on the case, the drives could hamper getting the mobo in there.

I always, without fail, install the mobo first.

Hopefully your case will have a hole allowing access to the rear of the motherboard's CPU socket - this will mean you can install the motherboard first, then your cooler.

My way of doing it:

1. Mobo into case
2. CPU into mobo
3. CPU cooler on
4. Ram
5. PSU
6. Drives
7. GPU

Then hook up all power and data connections, allowing you to keep the cables tidy.

You should install the RAM first as some coolers can obstruct RAM slots. Not all cases have access panels for the rear of the motherboard and even when they do its a lot more hassle than installing the cooler before putting the motherboard in the case.

You should also test the motherboard/CPU/RAM before putting it in the case to avoid future troubleshooting headeaches.

Dublin_Gunner

deconduo wrote: »

You should install the RAM first as some coolers can obstruct RAM slots. Not all cases have access panels for the rear of the motherboard and even when they do its a lot more hassle than installing the cooler before putting the motherboard in the case.

You should also test the motherboard/CPU/RAM before putting it in the case to avoid future troubleshooting headeaches.

1. Don't buy stupid ram with ridiculous, pointless massive heat sinks (with DDR3 - heat is not a consideration).

2. As I stated, hopefully your case will have access to the rear of the motherboard - a serious consideration before buying a case IMO.


I swapped out my CPU the other day (including removing my massive Cooler Master V6 GT), took less than 10 minutes, as I did not have to remove my motherboard. Only the cooler and the CPU.

Without having access to the rear of the motherboard, you could triple that time easily - and that's if you know what you're doing. Having to remove, power cables, gpu, sata cables, motherboard screws, etc etc and then having to replace it all - completely unnecessary if you buy the correct case in the first place.

Solitaire

Naked testbenching is a good idea too though. Generally, fans and possibly the SATA cables sticking out of optical drives are more likely to obstruct the mobo except in really tight cases. So you'd usually follow a build process closer to deconduo.

Dublin_Gunner

Solitaire wrote: »

Naked testbenching is a good idea too though. Generally, fans and possibly the SATA cables sticking out of optical drives are more likely to obstruct the mobo except in really tight cases. So you'd usually follow a build process closer to deconduo.

I'd never install the mobo last tbh. It being the most awkward part of putting a PC together it makes a lot more sense to have that in and secured tbh

And it being central to everything else, it seems even more natural that way. Sure, people have their own way of doing things, but putting the mobo in last seems utterly bizarre to me.

Testing outside is all well and good if you feel you need to first.

Tar.Aldarion

do mobos generally come with screws? I see some for mobos in my new case but do mobos not include some themselves?

deconduo

No, its the case that comes with the screws in my experience.

Tar.Aldarion

Ah ok cool, it came with loads, and what i think is a fan controller, it' a little dial thing anyway! :P
and something else hmm, this is going slow hehe

Tar.Aldarion

anybody have a fractal r3? Have you used the fan controller? I take it the door wouldnt close if I used it o I shouldnt bother?

deconduo

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

anybody have a fractal r3? Have you used the fan controller? I take it the door wouldnt close if I used it o I shouldnt bother?

Haven't used it, but google says it fits in a PCI slot? Could be wrong on this.

Tar.Aldarion

I will have a look about, all I did productively tonight was to put in the psu and read things!
Are these any use anyway or should I jut stick fans to the mobo or psu?

Burgo

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

I will have a look about, all I did productively tonight was to put in the psu and read things!

Reading, Manuals :eek: should just start screwing things together and hope for the best:p

deconduo

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

I will have a look about, all I did productively tonight was to put in the psu and read things!
Are these any use anyway or should I jut stick fans to the mobo or psu?

Yeah they are handy for noise levels. Turn up the fans when gaming and turn them down again when you want quietness.

If you're in Dublin and want a hand I'd be happy to help

Tar.Aldarion

I think I'm being far too careful burgo!

sure dec, might give you a shout if I fail bad soon
mostly I'm enjoying the learning!

Tar.Aldarion

Loving the removable HDD trays, that was a pleasure to use haha

Tar.Aldarion

I have bought three extra fans and am wondering is this the best way to mount them. (red arrows added fans, blue stock fans). Adding one additional 120 mm fan to the front of the case blowing back, one 140 mm at the bottom blowing up and one 140 mm at the top blowing up and out of the case?

Solitaire

Torn over which way to orient the rear fan - if (and only if) you can orient the CPU cooler to blow up (not all mobo/cooler combos support this) the best solution is to have the rear fan reversed to act as an intake and the CPU cooler pointing up (fan facing down, air moving up through it) so the air is blown clean into the top exhausts. And hot air rises, so you're working with the thermal direction rather than against it. Catch is that the rear fan is rarely supplied with a filter so don't try it in high-dust environments!

And the bottom fan is an issue... if you follow the above, the second 140mm fan should be in the second top exhaust slot (if it fits!), if sticking with good ol' front-to-back use it as a bottom intake. The catch is that this is the WORST solution for dusty environments if there's no bottom filter for the fan as well as the PSU

If you go with bottom-to-top and leave the rear fan as an intake you'll be a bit exhaust-heavy, resulting in negative case pressure. The catch with this is that your case will compensate by sucking in air through the empty bottom fan slot grille! It might also be stretching the two front intakes a bit thin, and as they're closer to the GPU the CPU cooler will have less air to push through.

Tar.Aldarion

So the rear 140 mm should blow into the case down onto the mobo? If and only if i an get the arctic 7 to blow up towards it?
so this should be back of case
http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/281/img5150o.jpg

then the second 140mm fan should go on the top of the case too, as an intake too or?
or it can go on the bottom as an intake


There are dust filters for both the bottom fan and for the psu. So would the top fan as an intake and bottom as an intake work well?
And is that if the cooler faces upwards, what if it face downwards, then i should point the top one the other way but keep the bottom as an intake?



I wonder to people leave the front door open as it cant pull air as well surely with it closed, but would be more silent hmmm
and if i wire it wrong does it go the other way, ha

Dublin_Gunner

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Fractal_Design/Define_R3/2.html

This review shows the fan controller. It fits into a PCI expansion opening on the back of your case.

Up to yourself whether you want to use it, or to use the motherboards software. Personally I can see it making a mess of cables, so would just use the mobo's fan headers.

On air flow, in general, I would always keep the flow in-front and low, out-back and high.

I'd only ever use the rear fan as an intake for a radiator, as it will only mix with warm air rising that should be expelled from the case.

However, different cases can act differently to airflow, so your best bet is to experiment.


But as I said generally, air in from low and the front, out high and rear.

The 140 at the bottom I would remove, as its just gonna suck in dirt, I reckon that spot is there for a rad for water cooling.

The one at the front, definitely intake, and the one in the roof, exhaust.

Having a slightly negative pressure in the case isn't a bad thing, as this will suck in more cool air from any little gap in the case.

Just realised I've pretty much said what Solitaire said below, apart from the rear exhaust blowing in.

Keep it simple, its best not to try counteract physics - warm air rises!

Tar.Aldarion

thanks I love the pic
Unsure what way to face the top rear one now, will mess around.

the bottom one has a dirt filter so that should be ok but will see if it fits with all thee cables etc