Online PC building guides.

MadYaker

So all my stuff has finally arrived and I'm sitting here with all of it infront of me and I don't even know where to start. Id like a list of a few online tutorials to guide me through the process. I'm assuming you start with the PSU?

Skerries

well I'd start with the motherboard and try an put the processor on it before you put it in as it can be easier
and I don't know what way people put their thermal paste on but I just put a bit in the middle and let it spread itself out when the chip goes on

MadYaker

I don't have thermal paste... I thought you were only supposed to use that if you were using a CPU fan?

Edit: theres a fan in the box, ill have to go to maplin and buy thermal paste and cable ties. Anything else I should pick up while im there that won't have come with my order? I have an anti statis wrist band.

Sarz91

MadYaker wrote: »

So all my stuff has finally arrived and I'm sitting here with all of it infront of me and I don't even know where to start. Id like a list of a few online tutorials to guide me through the process. I'm assuming you start with the PSU?

Haven't watched it all but it seems good

Skylinehead

MadYaker wrote: »

So all my stuff has finally arrived and I'm sitting here with all of it infront of me and I don't even know where to start. Id like a list of a few online tutorials to guide me through the process. I'm assuming you start with the PSU?

Look for how to build a PC on Newegg's youtube channel, they have 3 very good videos.

EDIT: ^pretty much that :pac:

Procrastastudy

Here's what I do;

Open all the windows and take my shirt off because I'm fat and there is going to be alot of sweat and swearing

Assemble the Motherboards first - CPU, if you are using a stock cooler it probably has a thermal pad. If not watch 15 hours of youtube clips discussing crosses, swastickers, fractals and decide a little blob in the middle is just as good

Nest RAM - make sure its seated properly and notches alined. This is very important as can bork your build if not done right.

Next thing - PSU in to case and make sure you are thinking ahead with regards yto cable management.

Nest thing is open up the motherboard manual and find all the headers (for USB, power switch, HDD and power LEDS) and connect them all up - double check any fan headers for the CPU you put in earlier. If you have an ASUS board thank them for inventing that little block for all the LEDs and switches - if you dont this is about the time the swearing gets to the point that anyone under the age of 18 should leave the house.

At this point I persoanlly like to do a power on test - just to makesure all the fans are spinning.

Next ingoes the Video Card - does the machine post? (Beep and put the BIOS screen up)?

Lastly Hard Drives and DVD Writer - then install windows.

Any specific questions just ask the guys here are not only the friendlist on Boards - they are probably the nicest online forum going.

Skerries

MadYaker wrote: »

I don't have thermal paste... I thought you were only supposed to use that if you were using a CPU fan?

something has to go on the processor otherwise it will overheat and fry itself, so you will need either a heatsink or a cpu cooler
one should come with the processor

MadYaker

Its looks like there is some sort of thermal compound on the bottom of the CPU fan so I guess I don't need paste. Its an intel i3.

Procrastastudy

Thats the jobie - you got a retail CPU and fan? all came in the same blue box?

If so that's the thermal compound.

Wish I was building my first PC again - I started out tinkering with my Byte 16Mb RAM 166Mhz Pentium - had it up to 233Mhz at one point - wow the speed!

Well actually the first tinkering I did was my 68040 board on my Amiga 1200. I case moded it.*

*Stacked books under it to lift if off the table so the 040 chip didn't melt

MadYaker

CPU and fan are in. This is f*cking terrifying I keep thinking im going to break something.

Edit: The RAM is in! I think I need a drink...

Procrastastudy

Once you have the CPU in and the fan connected to the main board, plus the memory in a chimpanzee can do the rest - I know I have many of the same attributes!

Only issues are seating memory and thermal paste / bents pins when building a machine really.

I used to be so careful with stuff - then realised stuff I'd finished with was being left unboxed in a plastic bag somewhere - normally with a load of crap thrown on top of it. Anything I resurrected was always grand!

MadYaker

Should I put the motherboard in the case before the PSU?

Procrastastudy

Which ever is easist for - just make sure to keep your cables as neat as possible.

Procrastastudy

Take a pic when you're done

The Clown Man

This is usually the order I do it in:

Place CPU into MB while out of the case (align the mark in the corner of the chip to the one in it's housing on the MB)
Secure MB to case
Secure PSU to case
Secure Hard Drives,DVD/BR Drives fans and anything else that needs to be screwed in
Plug power to MB
Add RAM
Add CPU fan/sink (using a SMALL amount of paste if needed)
Plug SATA cables to MB and drives (Careful if you have a SSD - they should get the top spots or any SATA III ports)
Plug Plower to MB and drives
Plug case power cable to MB and any USB/sound case extensions
Add Graphics Card
Plug power to GFX Card if required
Cable tie whatever you can keeping in mind the airflow in the case (you will have intake and exhaust fans - make sure they are blowing air through a clear open path, pref right past your GFX Card - in bottom/front, out top/back)
Plug in monitor and A/C power and cross fingers
Leave case open and rev it up
Everything post OK?
Check airflow is directing as intended
Power off
Close case and get OS install CD.
Enjoy.

Here is a list of stuff I check before hitting the "On" button:

Is the CPU fan properly secure?
Are all the power sockets on the MB filled? GFX Card has no gaping power sockets unfilled?
Case power buttons are definitely right?
All Drives have Power and SATA Cables?
Nothing interfering with fans? Dangling wires etc?
RAM is definitely in tight?
Power button is switched to "On" at the back of the PSU?


Good luck and have fun building! It's quite a nice feeling when it boots up for the first time. And don't panic if it doesn't - they don't break. (Unless of course a part was faulty to begin with but that's rare)

Sarz91

The Clown Man wrote: »

This is usually the order I do it in:

Place CPU into MB while out of the case (align the mark in the corner of the chip to the one in it's housing on the MB)
Secure MB to case
Secure PSU to case
Secure Hard Drives,DVD/BR Drives fans and anything else that needs to be screwed in
Plug power to MB
Add RAM
Add CPU fan/sink (using a SMALL amount of paste if needed)
Plug SATA cables to MB and drives (Careful if you have a SSD - they should get the top spots or any SATA III ports)
Plug Plower to MB and drives
Plug case power cable to MB and any USB/sound case extensions
Add Graphics Card
Plug power to GFX Card if required
Cable tie whatever you can keeping in mind the airflow in the case (you will have intake and exhaust fans - make sure they are blowing air through a clear open path, pref right past your GFX Card - in bottom/front, out top/back)
Plug in monitor and A/C power and cross fingers
Leave case open and rev it up
Everything post OK?
Check airflow is directing as intended
Power off
Close case and get OS install CD.
Enjoy.

Here is a list of stuff I check before hitting the "On" button:

Is the CPU fan properly secure?
Are all the power sockets on the MB filled? GFX Card has no gaping power sockets unfilled?
Case power buttons are definitely right?
All Drives have Power and SATA Cables?
Nothing interfering with fans? Dangling wires etc?
RAM is definitely in tight?
Power button is switched to "On" at the back of the PSU?


Good luck and have fun building! It's quite a nice feeling when it boots up for the first time. And don't panic if it doesn't - they don't break. (Unless of course a part was faulty to begin with but that's rare)

Just wondering but should you unplug the HDD if you want to install the OS on your SSD and then plug it back in after?

The Clown Man

Sarz91 wrote: »

Just wondering but should you unplug the HDD if you want to install the OS on your SSD and then plug it back in after?

No harm in doing that. The OS should ask you which disk you want to install to anyway but if you are unsure then it will give you some peace of mind.

MadYaker

So I put it all together, hooked the monitor, mouse, keyboard and plugged it in. I get a message on the monitor saying "no signal". Im using a DVI cable to connect my screen to the graphics card. I reckoned the graphics card wasn't getting power because its fan was the only 1 not spinning. Then I realised there was another cable coming from the PSU which has "PCI express" written on it. Since the graphics card is in a PCI slot I figured this cable must be for powering the PCI slot. There was only 1 place on the mother board where I could plug this cable, a socket labelled "ATX12V1" so I plug it in, try to boot it up but nothing happens. So I unplug the cable from the ATX12V1 socket and now when I press the power button the light comes on and all the fans (except the gfx card fan) spin for a second and then it all dies.

Any suggestion for a fix? My gfx card is a club 3d radeon hd 7750.

Sarz91

MadYaker wrote: »

So I put it all together, hooked the monitor, mouse, keyboard and plugged it in. I get a message on the monitor saying "no signal". Im using a DVI cable to connect my screen to the graphics card. I reckoned the graphics card wasn't getting power because its fan was the only 1 not spinning. Then I realised there was another cable coming from the PSU which has "PCI express" written on it. Since the graphics card is in a PCI slot I figured this cable must be for powering the PCI slot. There was only 1 place on the mother board where I could plug this cable, a socket labelled "ATX12V1" so I plug it in, try to boot it up but nothing happens. So I unplug the cable from the ATX12V1 socket and now when I press the power button the light comes on and all the fans (except the gfx card fan) spin for a second and then it all dies.

Any suggestion for a fix? My gfx card is a club 3d radeon hd 7750.

I've only limited knowledge on the topic but I'm almost sure the PCI express cable plugs into the GPU not into the motherboard. What have you got plugged into your GPU?

MadYaker

I can't see anywhere to plug anything into the GPU! Its not plugged into anything, its just slotted into the PCI slot. I might take it out again and have another look.

Sarz91

MadYaker wrote: »

I can't see anywhere to plug anything into the GPU! Its not plugged into anything, its just slotted into the PCI slot. I might take it out again and have another look.

I think there should be a slot at the fan end at the side I think.

MadYaker

Theres no slot, this is the card: http://www.club-3d.com/index.php/products/reader.en/product/radeon-hd-7750.html

Skylinehead

7750 doesn't require auxiliary power, it can take it from the PCI slot.

Sarz91

Skylinehead wrote: »

7750 doesn't require auxiliary power, it can take it from the PCI slot.

Sorry. My bad OP.

MadYaker

Well then obviously my PCI slot isn't receiving power...

Procrastastudy

4 pin power plug?

MadYaker

Sarz91 wrote: »

Sorry. My bad OP.

Don't worry about, all help is appreciated, Im giving it another try now.

MadYaker

There is ony 1 4 pin coming from my PSU, its blue and it says "CP" on it like this:



There is another 6 pin plug that looks like the one on the left in this pic:



There is only 1 place on my mobo where these 2 can go. Its just above the CPU fan, it has 8 slots and its labelled "ATX12V1"

Skylinehead

That's CPU power, and needs to be connected. Should be an 8-pin or 4 + 4 to go into that.

Procrastastudy

I hope you#ve read the manual regards what goes where on your mainboard Mr

That 6 pin is for a gfx card you may not need it.

Skylinehead

You won't need the PCI-E 6 pin. You do need the CPU 8 pin /whatever configuration it is to go into the socket beside the CPU.

Monotype

You don't need to buy cable ties from maplin, there's usually a few in the boxes holding cables together.

In the first pic, that's not "CP" on the plug, it's "CPU1". Some motherboards take 4 pins, some take 8. Looks like you have four, so plug that in. The second pic for graphics card. These can be 8-pin too so they sometimes look very similar to the CPU ones.

Edit: Oops a bit slow at the posting.

Procrastastudy

I (and everyone else) forgot to ask...

Having fun?

MadYaker

Ok it all boots up fine now and everything seems to be receiving power as it should, the CPU is a bit slow to get going it stutters a bit before spinning properly, but i don't think thats a problem?

Anyway the main problem now is that my monitor isn't receiving signal. The output on my GPU is DVI and the input on my monitor is DVI-D so im just using a DVI cable since that fits into both. That should work shouldn't it? I can't use a hdmi cable since its not compatible with my monitor.

Edit: theres a 46 inch HD TV upstairs that has HDMI input....

Procrastastudy

MadYaker wrote: »

Ok it all boots up fine now and everything seems to be receiving power as it should, the CPU is a bit slow to get going it stutters a bit before spinning properly, but i don't think thats a problem?

Anyway the main problem now is that my monitor isn't receiving signal. The output on my GPU is DVI and the input on my monitor is DVI-D so im just using a DVI cable since that fits into both. That should work shouldn't it? I can't use a hdmi cable since its not compatible with my monitor.

DVI-D and DVI are something you dont need to worry about - that wont be the issue the two are compatible.

Have you made sure the gfx card is seated properly. Are you hearing a 'post' Beep. Are there any diagnostic lights on the mainboard - which are in the manual.

MadYaker

My manual must be sh*te because there is noting in it about any lights on the motherboard. I just tried to boot it up there to see if i could hear the beep or see any lights and now it wont boot properly!! All the fans spin for less than a second and then stop. If i press the button again nothing happens. If i switch off the PSU and then switch it back on and then press the power button the same thing happens again

Procrastastudy

IT fairly normal (for me) to come across this type of problem - when you find it you'll kick yourself becuase its something silly.

MB may not have diag lights not all do.

Have you gone though the manual section by section making sire all the components are in correctly and seated properly?

MadYaker

It boots up fine if i take out the GPU so Im guessing thats the problem, maybe it wasn't seated properly, ill put it back in and try again.

Procrastastudy

The retention clip can be a bit of a pain so that might be it - are you sure the gfx card doesnt need external power?

When you say "boots up" what do you mean? A post beep or just the fans spin?

The Clown Man

You'd want to make sure that the power lead you have plugged into the motherboard is the correct one. Check the manual of your PSU to ensure you are using the correct one.

The extra juice is to power the PCIe slots so if there is not enough power there the GFX card won't boot properly.

It could also be that it is not seated properly - there is usually but not always a clip on the far side of the slot which ensures the card is fully in. You might have to press firmly to get it to click. If there is not a clip, be sure that tightening the card to the case slot is not dislodging it.

MadYaker

The gfx card doesn't need external power, and there is a clip to hold it in place. Im fairly certain its seated properly.

When I say "boots up" I mean the light inside the PSU comes on, all the fans start to spin and there is a beep but it sounds like its coming from the DVD drive...

Im fairly sure the power lead for the motherboard is in the right place, its a 20 pin + a 4 pin and there is only 1 place on the motherboard where it can go.

Procrastastudy

unplug the dvd power and see if you still get the beep - its important to find out if you're getting a POST beep

MadYaker

ITS ALLIIIVEEEEEEE!!!!!!! Installing windows now

Procrastastudy

Told you its fun!

MadYaker

Thanks for all your help guys!

Sarz91

MadYaker wrote: »

Thanks for all your help guys!

How was it as a whole? Ordering as soon as Ulster Bank gets sorted haha.

MadYaker

Putting the processor and the ram onto the mobo is a bit stressful, I kept thinking i was going to break something or not be grounded properly and fry the whole the whole thing. Apart from that it was grand.

Procrastastudy

I've yet to static damage a component in 16 years of messing with PCs - I personally think its a myth.

Well unless you skate round on your axminster for twenty mins.