building advice needed

[notAfanOf]

Since my first post was obviously far too long to get replies, I'll break it down

 

This is my system now:

 

 

mb: Asus Prime A320M-K

cpu: ryzen 5 2600X (AMD cooler)

ram: single 16gb (adata, 2666Mhz)

gpu: gtx 1060 (6gb) (by inno3d)

ssd1: 240gb (adata)

ssd2: 1tb samsung 860 QVO (I bought that after I ran quickly out of space with the 240gb)

psu: aerocool pmc-power 650w

case: aerocool cylon

 

I bought it pre-built and just added the second ssd.

 

I have now bought a Asus ROG Strix B450-f gaming II and 2x8GB vengeance LPX 3000Mhz - not really as an upgrade, more to establish a new baseline and eliminate the weakest links (at least to my understanding). They arrive tomorrow and I could need some advice what I have to watch out for and consider. (The last pc I completely disassembled and rebuilt had a pentium 4 )

[boggy77]

ram needs to be in slots 2 and 4. use the motherboard manual for building instructions

[Henry2026]

I think this LTT video should guide you. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7MYOpFONCU

[notAfanOf]

ps: were the new mb and ram a bad decision?

[Chris Pratt]

32 minutes ago, notAfanOf said:

ps: were the new mb and ram a bad decision?

RAM, no. Mobo, maybe? It doesn't actually do anything for you here, though it puts you in a better state for upgrading other components like CPU later.

 

As far as things to watch out for, a big one is removing the cooler and CPU from the old board. After you unscrew the cooler, gently rotate it slightly back and forth until you feel it loosen, before pulling it off. If you just yank it up, there's a high likelihood of ripping the CPU out of the socket and potentially damaging the pins.

 

Also verify the motherboard standoffs in the case and that they match the positioning of the holes in the new mobo. If a stray standoff makes contact with the PCB, you can potentially short. When installing the mobo in the case, use a magnetic screwdriver. Some of the screw placements can be awkward to get at, and losing a screw somewhere under the mobo sucks.

 

It's best to install everything on the mobo except for the GPU outside of the case. You can use the mobo box as a makeshift test bench, if you don't have a mat or other protected non-conductive surface. This makes it much easier to get at everything. It's also not a bad idea to do a test POST before actually installing it in the case (temporarily install the GPU), just to ensure everything is working.

 

Mark out the locations of the various power cable connections for the board and components, and run the cables through any cable routing holes before installing the motherboard. This can sometimes be difficult to do after the fact.

 

[notAfanOf]

20 minutes ago, Chris Pratt said:

RAM, no. Mobo, maybe? It doesn't actually do anything for you here, though it puts you in a better state for upgrading other components like CPU later.

 

As far as things to watch out for, a big one is removing the cooler and CPU from the old board. After you unscrew the cooler, gently rotate it slightly back and forth until you feel it loosen, before pulling it off. If you just yank it up, there's a high likelihood of ripping the CPU out of the socket and potentially damaging the pins.

 

Also verify the motherboard standoffs in the case and that they match the positioning of the holes in the new mobo. If a stray standoff makes contact with the PCB, you can potentially short. When installing the mobo in the case, use a magnetic screwdriver. Some of the screw placements can be awkward to get at, and losing a screw somewhere under the mobo sucks.

 

It's best to install everything on the mobo except for the GPU outside of the case. You can use the mobo box as a makeshift test bench, if you don't have a mat or other protected non-conductive surface. This makes it much easier to get at everything. It's also not a bad idea to do a test POST before actually installing it in the case (temporarily install the GPU), just to ensure everything is working.

 

Mark out the locations of the various power cable connections for the board and components, and run the cables through any cable routing holes before installing the motherboard. This can sometimes be difficult to do after the fact.

 

Thanks for the very detailed instructions!

 

is this mobo any good for OC? could I - with upgrades at psu + cooling - delay a possible upgrade (@cpu+/gpu) with OC?

[Chris Pratt]

3 minutes ago, notAfanOf said:

Thanks for the very detailed instructions!

 

is this mobo any good for OC? could I - with upgrades at psu + cooling - delay a possible upgrade (@cpu+/gpu) with OC?

It's capable of the power delivery necessary for overclocking. How much additional performance you can squeeze out of your CPU and GPU is a different issue entirely. Each is unique, and just depends on how lucky you get in the silicon lottery. It may OC a lot or not at all. It's never going to work miracles though. If you're hovering at 57-59 FPS a good OC might get you over the line to a solid 60, for example.

[notAfanOf]

3 minutes ago, Chris Pratt said:

It's capable of the power delivery necessary for overclocking. How much additional performance you can squeeze out of your CPU and GPU is a different issue entirely. Each is unique, and just depends on how lucky you get in the silicon lottery. It may OC a lot or not at all. It's never going to work miracles though. If you're hovering at 57-59 FPS a good OC might get you over the line to a solid 60, for example.

thanks for the great answer! I never measured fps - do I need a tool (program) for that?

[Chris Pratt]

2 minutes ago, notAfanOf said:

thanks for the great answer! I never measured fps - do I need a tool (program) for that?

Yes and no. Some games have built in FPS counters. Otherwise, you can use the GeForce Experience app. There's other programs you can use, often with more data and features, sometimes at a cost. Just depends what you need and want.

[Fatih19]

48 minutes ago, Chris Pratt said:

It's capable of the power delivery necessary for overclocking. How much additional performance you can squeeze out of your CPU and GPU is a different issue entirely. Each is unique, and just depends on how lucky you get in the silicon lottery. It may OC a lot or not at all. It's never going to work miracles though. If you're hovering at 57-59 FPS a good OC might get you over the line to a solid 60, for example.

Wait, it's an A320 board. I thought those boards can't overclock?
Edit : Didn't read OP's message at the bottom. Sorry.

[Fatih19]

Oh yeah that's a good buying decision for sure.The better board would widen your upgrade path by a lot.