First Build Ever

[Seaborn63]

I want to do my first PC build and really have no idea where to start.  There are just too many tutorials and guides, and it all overwhelmed me.

 

I've never built a PC before, and I haven't bought any parts yet so everything is still on the table.  

 

Also, I don't know a whole lot about hardware, so if you do have recommendations please tell me why (and explain like I'm a dumb 8-year-old) that will be greatly greatly appreciated.

 

Basically, just help this ultra-noob out please

 

Budget:  500-1000 US$

Aim:  Simple gaming (local only/nothing huge), local programming (simply Python and C/++, nothing huge), and maybe some simple video editing (willing to sacrifice for other two)

Monitors:  2 max; not looking for outrageous quality (i guess 1080p?)

Peripherals: Currently have nothing for it

Why:  To understand the hardware. I want to be able to build my own high-end gaming PC in the future, but I want to practice putting something much much less expensive together

[Findiculous]

7 minutes ago, Seaborn63 said:

(and explain like I'm a dumb 8-year-old) 

just help this ultra-noob out please

 

Budget:  500-1000 US$

Aim:  Simple gaming (local only/nothing huge), local programming (simply Python and C/++, nothing huge), and maybe some simple video editing (willing to sacrifice for other two)

Monitors:  2 max; not looking for outrageous quality (i guess 1080p?)

Peripherals: Currently have nothing for it

Why:  To understand the hardware. I want to be able to build my own high-end gaming PC in the future, but I want to practice putting something much much less expensive together

This video. However you will need to make some sacrifices for peripherals so aim between the 500 and 1000 mark.

[Emanbaird]

op do you plan on doing any gaming at all?

[Seaborn63]

2 minutes ago, Emanbaird said:

op do you plan on doing any gaming at all?

Yes.  Nothing that requires 4K and no VR.  Just some city-builders from Steam on this one and I'll be happy.

[Seaborn63]

Also, peripherals are not included in the 500-1000.  That is hardware only pretty much.  Monitors and peripherals are separate with no real budget, so all suggestions welcome and I will decide later

[Findiculous]

21 minutes ago, Seaborn63 said:

Also, peripherals are not included in the 500-1000.  That is hardware only pretty much.  Monitors and peripherals are separate with no real budget, so all suggestions welcome and I will decide later

Thats what i mentioned above with being in between the 500 and 1000 as in the video. This would allow wiggle room for the monitor and peripherals. 

Also to note is that this was pre-1660Ti which is competitively priced for that 1000 build.

 

The rest of peripherals can be low end. Monitor 60hz 1080p to start (just 1 monitor though)

Simple keyboard and mouse. Decent headset. Done

 

Edit: Also to note that the $1000 build was at christmas and quite a bit has happened since then so some parts may be even cheaper now.

[Emanbaird]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor	$164.99 @ Amazon
Motherboard	Asus - ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING ATX AM4 Motherboard	$129.00 @ B&H
Memory	Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory	$108.99 @ Newegg Business
Storage	Western Digital - Blue 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	$67.89 @ OutletPC
Video Card	EVGA - GeForce RTX 2060 6 GB XC BLACK GAMING Video Card	$349.99 @ B&H
Case	NZXT - H500 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case	$69.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply	$99.89 @ OutletPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$1020.74
	Mail-in rebates	-$30.00
	Total	$990.74
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-03-04 17:00 EST-0500

This is what I would personally recommend, this would leave a spot to increase storage in the future, if you really need to stay under $1000, I would recommend dropping to the 1660 Ti, but there is a noticeable difference between the two

[GoldenLag]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($164.99 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: ASRock - B450M Steel Legend Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($93.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: GeIL - EVO SPEAR 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory  ($84.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Crucial - MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($69.85 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($59.89 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: MSI - GeForce GTX 1660 Ti 6 GB VENTUS XS OC Video Card  ($279.00 @ B&H) 
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($46.98 @ B&H) 
Power Supply: Corsair - TXM Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ Newegg) 
Monitor: AOC - G2590FX 24.5" 1920x1080 144 Hz Monitor  ($219.99 @ B&H) 
Total: $1089.66
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-03-04 17:06 EST-0500

 

Here is a solid build including a monitor. So the tower itself is below 1k by a fair margin.

 

This is somrthing you should be looking at in your usecase.

[GoldenLag]

5 minutes ago, Emanbaird said:

Power Supply EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply $99.89 @ OutletPC

Why? 550 watt is more than enough

6 minutes ago, Emanbaird said:

Motherboard Asus - ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING ATX AM4 Motherboard $129.00 @ B&H

Dont recommend this board. Its terrible value and not a good board for the price at all. Its just a no go for literally anyone

[Emanbaird]

4 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

Why? 550 watt is more than enough

Dont recommend this board. Its terrible value and not a good board for the price at all. Its just a no go for literally anyone

I've used Asus boards in the past and they have always performed above average, what has happened in recent years?

 

And while 550w may be enough 750w would allow for future upgrades, and would be able to run any CPU/Single card combination. 

 

 

The only other b450 board I've used is the Mortar from MSI and while It is a good board, either it's not available or my PCPartpicker is broken

[GoldenLag]

2 minutes ago, Emanbaird said:

I've used Asus boards in the past and they have always performed above average, what has happened in recent years?

They started overcharging for their boards while offering weak VRM. 

2 minutes ago, Emanbaird said:

And while 550w may be enough 750w would allow for future upgrades, and would be able to run any CPU/Single card combination

Unless you are doing HEDT level CPU you do not need more than 550 watts. 

4 minutes ago, Emanbaird said:

The only other b450 board I've used is the Mortar from MSI and while It is a good board, either it's not available or my PCPartpicker is broken

Its there, but last time i checked the pricing in it is bad. You can pretty much use any aurous board and it be better than the Asus board. 

[Seaborn63]

@GoldenLag & @Emanbaird I really like both of those suggestions.  Thank you very much.  (didn't know PCpartpicker was a thing either; thanks a whole lot for that)

 

Do I need to worry about cooling at all? (told you i was a noob)

[GoldenLag]

6 hours ago, Seaborn63 said:

Do I need to worry about cooling at all? (told you i was a noob)

The 2600 has an included cooling solution that works fine and is easy to install.

 

 

And i would suggest my build over the other one. He did some minor misstanes when putting it together.

[Seaborn63]

7 hours ago, GoldenLag said:

The 2600 has an included cooling solution that works fine and is easy to install.

 

 

And i would suggest my build over the other one. He did some minor misstanes when putting it together.

Yours seems a better entry build to my novice eye.  I just want to get familiar with the process and lay my hands on some hardware for the first time.

 

If I want to understand how to pick better parts myself, how do I start learning that?

[l0bst3r]

Read online reviews, watch YouTube videos, compare specs, ask people on forums

[GoldenLag]

24 minutes ago, Seaborn63 said:

If I want to understand how to pick better parts myself, how do I start learning that?

lurking around "new builds and planning" to learn what the common best parts are by watching threads. 

 

watch reviews to see what each part does best and to understand what the focus is for different types of builds

 

read through this. me and some others worked on this a little while back and i think youll learn a thing or two.

 

its mostly an accumilation of what is good and what is not, and then build up the best build for its purpose. 

[Seaborn63]

That's really awesome @GoldenLag.  Thank you.

 

Do you have a recommendation for what order I should acquire the parts?  My plan is to accumulate the parts slowly over a few months.  If this is a bad plan then tell me please

[xKyric]

8 hours ago, Seaborn63 said:

Do you have a recommendation for what order I should acquire the parts?  My plan is to accumulate the parts slowly over a few months.  If this is a bad plan then tell me please

It's best to purchase all your components at once. It's not a huge deal if you don't, but I would avoid purchasing hardware that limits the options of what other components you could possibly use.  

For example, I wouldn't buy a motherboard knowing that I can't purchase the CPU for a few months.