About to begin my first ever self build..any tips or advice?

[GamerBlake]

I’ve never built a system from scratch by myself, but I have replaced every single component in a PC since I bought my IBuyPower prebuilt and I’m about to do it for the first time since I’m moving everything into my new case.

 

Does anyone have any tips or advice for new builders? Like things that might save me some time or hassle? Or things you wished you would’ve known to do when you did you first build?

 

I would really appreciate it!

 

Thanks in advance :).

 

[Derrk]

mount that rad fans before your install the radiator

plug in whatever psu cables you need to the power supply before you install it

[For Science!]

Assemble as much as you can outside the case first.

Do a test boot outside the case too

cable manage as you go

[Brooksie359]

I wish I knew that building my first pc in my underwear to minimize electrostatic shock damage was a bit overkill. 

[GamerBlake]

Just now, Derrk said:

mount that rad fans before your install the radiator

plug in whatever psu cables you need to the power supply before you install it

You mean the 2x 140mm fans on the 280mm EVGA AIO right?

 

Should I mount them before I put the motherboard in? Or just before I put it on the cpu?

 

Also my PSU is fully modular and I’m not quite sure which cables I will need. I know I need the 24 pin motherboard cable and the cable for the CPU but I’m not sure how many, like SATA cables I will need.  

 

I have 2x SATA SSDs and 2x SATA HDDs.

[GamerBlake]

1 minute ago, For Science! said:

Assemble as much as you can outside the case first.

Do a test boot outside the case too

cable manage as you go

I’ve had a lot of difficulty with cable management in the past. I got a fully modular PSU hoping it would help but when I put it in my build I still had cable management issues :/.

 

Should I test it by using the mobo box as a temporary case and plugging everything into it and testing it like that?  

[seon123]

Take your time, don't rush anything, have fun, take pictures of the end product.

Make sure your RAM is oriented correctly, and make sure it's in all the way. It can take more pressure than you may expect.

Plan your cable routing. This includes the orientation of the fans, so the wires can be routed cleanly.

[Gremlin_FLG]

To save from static damaging stuff, buy a static wrist strap.

 

Unbox the PSU and connect power cable to the wall outlet. 

Don't connect the PSU cables to anything. Connect the Wrist Strap clip to the grill of the PSU Fan. 

Turn the switch on .. 

 

And you are all set.. 

 

 

[For Science!]

10 minutes ago, GamerBlake said:

Should I test it by using the mobo box as a temporary case and plugging everything into it and testing it like that?  

Yep

[Derrk]

10 minutes ago, GamerBlake said:

You mean the 2x 140mm fans on the 280mm EVGA AIO right?

 

Should I mount them before I put the motherboard in? Or just before I put it on the cpu?

 

Also my PSU is fully modular and I’m not quite sure which cables I will need. I know I need the 24 pin motherboard cable and the cable for the CPU but I’m not sure how many, like SATA cables I will need.  

 

I have 2x SATA SSDs and 2x SATA HDDs.

yeah install the 2x140 fans on the 280 aio before you screw that aio onto the case

 

cables you'll need are 24 pin, cpu power cable (most likely 8pin but could be 4pin depending on motherboard), pcie cables (2x8pin) and sata. most sata cables are daisy-chained so you might only need 1 sata cable depending on the placement of your drives

[Bartholomew]

28 minutes ago, GamerBlake said:

I’ve never built a system from scratch by myself, but I have replaced every single component in a PC since I bought my IBuyPower prebuilt and I’m about to do it for the first time since I’m moving everything into my new case.

 

Does anyone have any tips or advice for new builders? Like things that might save me some time or hassle?

I would really appreciate it!

 

Thanks in advance :).

 

 

If your wear any rings/bracelets remove them; They tend to catch and/or scratch stuff (...gmbls...  mumbles somethjng a bout a sidepanel of a previous build  )

 

Same with tools: put them away when not needed (so dont hold a screwdriver while turning a thumbscrew for example (...grmbls... mumbling something about nearly killing a fan by sticking driver in it when reaching for screw that fell off magnetic screwdriver into the case..).

 

enjoy your build

 

Edit: (added) and oh, if wearing a fleece/sweater that has metal buttons or zip on the front, again be carefull not to scratch the build when lifting/moving it... (mubles something, a well, you get the point by now )

[Derrk]

4 minutes ago, Gremlin_FLG said:

To save from static damaging stuff, buy a static wrist strap.

 

Unbox the PSU and connect power cable to the wall outlet. 

Don't connect the PSU cables to anything. Connect the Wrist Strap clip to the grill of the PSU Fan. 

Turn the switch on .. 

 

And you are all set.. 

 

 

wrist straps are overkill. just dont rub your socks on the carpet for an hour before you build and you'll be fine. if you're really worried about static, just touch the case or something metal before you start to discharge any static you've built up over the day

[Belac F]

Remember to use tweezers for cable management, and make sure you have a swiss army knife that hopefully has a screwdriver. Don't forget the live strong bracelet. And if the power supply touches the case, it will short out the whole thing.

[GamerBlake]

1 hour ago, Derrk said:

wrist straps are overkill. just dont rub your socks on the carpet for an hour before you build and you'll be fine. if you're really worried about static, just touch the case or something metal before you start to discharge any static you've built up over the day

I’m actually building it in my room on a wooden table but my room does have carpet. If I touch the metal case once in a while am I risking damaging the components?  

[Derrk]

Just now, GamerBlake said:

I’m actually building it in my room on a wooden table but my room does have carpet. If I touch the metal case once in a while am I risking damaging the components?  

i wouldnt worry about static discharge. it takes a lot to actually damage things & i'm sure you'll be touching the case a bunch anyways

[GamerBlake]

3 minutes ago, Derrk said:

i wouldnt worry about static discharge. it takes a lot to actually damage things & i'm sure you'll be touching the case a bunch anyways

I remember Linus or Jay (from Jayztwocents) said something about how parts used to be a lot more susceptible to static discharge but that these days it’s not as much of a problem since they’re built a lot more durable.

 

Jay even did a video of “How to build a PC the wrong way” and he did all sorts of things like rubbing his socks on the carpet and other things like that and still had no problems.

 

My motherboard is also a pretty high tier one (MEG z390 ACE) so I’m hoping that means it has higher quality materials and more protection from things like static discharge.

[Derrk]

1 minute ago, GamerBlake said:

I remember Linus or Jay (from Jayztwocents) said something about how parts used to be a lot more susceptible to static discharge but that these days it’s not as much of a problem since they’re built a lot more durable.

 

Jay even did a video of “How to build a PC the wrong way” and he did all sorts of things like rubbing his socks on the carpet and other things like that and still had no problems.

 

My motherboard is also a pretty high tier one (MEG z390 ACE) so I’m hoping that means it has higher quality materials and more protection from things like static discharge.

yeah its tough to kill pc parts. dont put your motherboard in the washing machine and you'll be fine

[GamerBlake]

Hey everyone, I just got a new NZXT H510 Elite case for Christmas and then a few days ago I bought an MSI MEG z390 ACE motherboard (to replace my old MSI z370-a Pro which I read wasn’t a very good motherboard) so I decided to move everything into the new case.

 

So far I have the motherboard, cpu (I cleaned off the old thermal paste that I had on it) and PSU installed with all the cables in the back, but not plugged in, and I’m wondering what parts I should put in next?

 

Im afraid I might put a part in and it will get in the way of something else. I removed all the fans so I would have more room to work in the case.

I also have my EVGA CLC 280 280mm ready to go with the fans installed on the radiator.

 

Any suggestions for what order I should put my parts in after the mobo, cpu, and psu are installed?  

[Samfisher]

Didn't we go over this yesterday lol.

[GamerBlake]

1 minute ago, Samfisher said:

Didn't we go over this yesterday lol.

Yes we did but I’m wondering what other people think I should do too.

 

Because you told me to put in the PSU first and then AIO but I had already put the mobo and cpu in first so I’m not sure what to do next having already done that.

[Samfisher]

2 minutes ago, GamerBlake said:

Yes we did but I’m wondering what other people think I should do too.

 

Because you told me to put in the PSU first and then AIO but I had already put the mobo and cpu in first so I’m not sure what to do next having already done that.

Doesn't really matter as long as everything fits and there's nothing blocking anything.  Your PSU is in a completely different compartment to the rest of your case, and you should have enough space for the AIO to go in without a problem.

[GamerBlake]

Just now, Samfisher said:

Doesn't really matter as long as everything fits and there's nothing blocking anything.  Your PSU is in a completely different compartment to the rest of your case, and you should have enough space for the AIO to go in without a problem.

But won’t the AIO make it harder to plug in some of the cables when the time comes? Like the CPU power cable?  

 

Also do you know if it’s possible to install fans on both sides of the radiator?

[Samfisher]

2 minutes ago, GamerBlake said:

But won’t the AIO make it harder to plug in some of the cables when the time comes? Like the CPU power cable?  

 

Also do you know if it’s possible to install fans on both sides of the radiator?

Not really no.  You might have a tiny bit of trouble with the 8 pin, but nobody makes stuff that completely wouldn't work unless you do everything in the exact same way.

 

Yes you can have fans on both sides, both blowing the same direction.  It's called a push-pull config.

[GamerBlake]

2 minutes ago, Samfisher said:

Not really no.  You might have a tiny bit of trouble with the 8 pin, but nobody makes stuff that completely wouldn't work unless you do everything in the exact same way.

 

Yes you can have fans on both sides, both blowing the same direction.  It's called a push-pull config.

Oh ok, I’ll have to try that because my EVGA CLC 280 280mm AIO came with 2x 140mm fans on it but my case also came with 2x 140mm fans where it’s supposed to go and the way it screws into the case forces me to put the fans behind the radiator so when I look at the front of the case I just see a black radiator instead of 2 fans like it was originally supposed to be.

[Samfisher]

3 minutes ago, GamerBlake said:

Oh ok, I’ll have to try that because my EVGA CLC 280 280mm AIO came with 2x 140mm fans on it but my case also came with 2x 140mm fans where it’s supposed to go and the way it screws into the case forces me to put the fans behind the radiator so when I look at the front of the case I just see a black radiator instead of 2 fans like it was originally supposed to be.

Case fans are low RPM and are not made for static pressure, unlike the fans that come with your radiator.  They will not work well together.  And having the fans on the inside is more convenient, as any dust you accumulate will be stuck on the outside of the radiator, which only necessitates you remove the front panel to clean.  Having the fans in front of the radiator means dust will be stuck in between the rad and fan, requiring you to remove the radiator and fan from the case to clean.