Truthless

I just bought the parts I need for a new computer on black Friday. This isn't the first time I've build a computer but it's never too late to learn new things so I figured I'd come here and ask: what are your guys tips and tricks/ best practices for a brand new computer and windows installation? Some things I'm interested in: I haven't built a computer in about four years, what new things should I know about? I'm switching from Intel to amd this round, and I know ram is more important. I got 3200 mhz ram but will there be anything else I need to do? I remember reading about changing a setting in the bios, is that still relevant? I never felt like I got the most out of my old processor (i5 6600k) what can I do to make sure that I am getting the expected performance from my computer? What drivers should I keep up to date? I remember reading somewhere that it's best to let windows handle drivers other than gpu, is that accurate? How do you handle your file structure? Do you let the installation wizard put things where ever or do you make specialized folders for everything? Any cool softwares you'd recommend? Sorry for this wall of text, I'm just excited to put my computer together and want to learn what I can. Here's the pcpartpicker for the new computer for those curious PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/r2tHGc CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600X 3.8 GHz 6-Core Processor ($244.99 @ Walmart) CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 RGB Black Edition 57.3 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon) Motherboard: ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming 4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg) Memory: Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg) Storage: Intel 660p Series 1.02 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($117.95 @ Amazon) Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB FTW2 DT Gaming iCX Video Card (Purchased For $0.00) Case: Phanteks P300 ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $0.00) Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply Total: $602.91 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-12-06 03:15 EST-0500

So should I make sure to get an MSI board, or do all mobo manufacturers have a similar feature?

pcpartpicker is warning me about a possible bios update with the cpu and mobo combo, do you know anything about that?

Would that give me around the same performance as a Ryzen 3600?

Is Ryzen 3600 about the best I can find for $200?

I recently got my hands on a GTX 1080 and plopped it into my system. I have an i5 6600K with 16 gigs of memory on Windows 10. The 1080 replaced a RX480 which replaced a R9 280. So the computer is getting a bit old. When I installed the 1080 I was expecting a pretty substantial performance boost, but I barely noticed a difference. I checked my stats in task manager and found that my CPU was running at close to 100% most of the time, while the GPU was in between 60%-70%. So my goal is to upgrade my computer, I don't mind totally building a new computer based off of the 1080. I might upgrade the GPU again in the future, but likely not for several years. My budget is $600 USD, I can afford to go higher if the benefit is good enough. I live in Oregon, US. I am willing to reuse anything in my current build, but I would prefer to have this be future proof for several years if possible. I use two monitors, but only my 144hz one for gaming. The other is just for my discord or messenger. I only game at 1080p and I have a high refresh rate monitor I would like to utilize. I will try and link a pcpartpicker list of my current build as close as I can manage. PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/9Mdycq CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($220.88 @ Amazon) CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Amazon) Motherboard: MSI Z270-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard Memory: Kingston FURY 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-2400 Memory Storage: Western Digital Blue 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($64.66 @ Amazon) Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($42.99 @ Amazon) Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB FTW2 DT Gaming iCX Video Card Case: Zalman Z9 NEO ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.99 @ Amazon) Power Supply: Thermaltake Smart 500 W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.99 @ Amazon) Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.89 @ Amazon) Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($99.95 @ Amazon) Monitor: Dell P2217H 21.5" 1920x1080 60 Hz Monitor ($138.99 @ Amazon) Monitor: Acer XFA240 bmjdpr 24.0" 1920x1080 144 Hz Monitor ($179.99 @ Amazon) Total: $922.32 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-10-08 22:00 EDT-0400

So I got a new GPU and I tried installing my old one in my wife's computer. I turn the computer off before I start taking the panel off and it needs an update. I plug the gpu in and get it all set up and I turn the computer on and get no image. I flick the power switch and open the computer up again so see if I didn't plug the power in all the way or something. Plug it back in, power it on again and now it won't post. Turn the power on and the fans start, the LEDs light up, then 3-4 seconds later it powers down, and then starts again on a loop. I realize I must have accidentally shut it down while it was trying to install the updates or something. What can I do to fix this? I removed the GPU and reseated the gpu connections. I let it cycle for about half hour. I tried googling it but my google-fu is in bad shape and I can't find anything like my problem. Thanks a lot for any help.

I'm not sure, I'll try and check. It does not work in my other system.

It does not appear in the system BIOS or in the device manager, I've checked the hidden devices and unrecognized ones. I think I agree

Bake it? what? I will try this after I have explored my other options, I don't have the time at the moment. No, it is not. There is only one cable with two 8 pins coming from it. I have tried plugging them both in to the same result. I linked the PSU above, but I will include some pics. I've never even heard of that, where would I find it if it had one?

No, not that I can see. The only thing I can think of is some kind of static damage or something. I just took it out and left it on the table until I had a moment to plug it into my wife's computer. No one touched it or did anything weird with it. I guess I'll take it to a computer repair shop and spend a fortune diagnosing it.

Welp, i guess the 480 somehow died in the transition. My wife's case is too small for my 1080 to fit into it, but I tried putting the 480 into my computer and it has the same problem. So I guess sometime in the hours or so from when I took the 480 out of my system and put it into hers it died or suffered some kind of damage. Is there any way that I can find out the problem? Or would it be easier to give up on it at this point?

I can't get any output from the card at all. When I plug the HDMI into it I wont get any image on the monitor. I tried installing the drivers by going to AMD's website and downloading the latest driver installer and running it, but before the process finishes I get an error that I don't have a compatible graphics card installed.

What's DDU? I haven't been able to install the drivers at all, when I try I get an error telling me that I don't have a GPU installed. I think it is a problem with the PCI-E slot, since it isn't detecting the card at all. Is there a way that I can test the slot to make sure its working? The PSU is an Enermax revolution duo 500w http://www.enermax.com/home.php?fn=eng/product_a1_1_1&lv0=1&lv1=99&no=319 I never heard of Enermax before, but at the computer shop the guy highly recommended it.

Alright, let me know what more you'd like to see