Build advice please.

Frankie5Angels

1. What is your budget? €600/650, but could be pushed a little further if it was worth it.

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? Working from home the odd time, general farting around but would like to play some games on it as well.

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? Yes, unless I can source one elsewhere!

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? Nope

5. Do you need a monitor? Not just now. Plan to use a TV for now, purchase a large monitor in a couple of months.

5a. If yes, what size do you need. [N/A for now

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? Currently 1080p (TV). Will be upgrading in future, but find 1080p fine.

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? Definitely a wireless card, but keyboard and mouse I could probably do without buying straight away.

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? No idea about it, so probably not.

8. How can you pay? Debit Card/Credit Card

9. When are you purchasing? In the next week, hopefully.

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? Would think I'll need help, or at least some advice if possible. North Kildare at home / West Dublin for work, but can travel if need be.

Be gentle

K.O.Kiki

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor (£133.97 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI - B450 Gaming Plus ATX AM4 Motherboard (£79.98 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Patriot - Viper 4 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (£44.31 @ CCL Computers)
Storage: Kingston - A1000 480 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive (£64.22 @ CCL Computers)
Video Card: Asus - Radeon RX 570 4 GB ROG STRIX Video Card (£119.99)
Case: Zalman - S2 ATX Mid Tower Case (£43.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: be quiet! - System Power 9 600 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (£51.91 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £538.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-06-23 23:17 BST+0100

GPU @ Overclockers.

Wait another 2 weeks for Ryzen 3000 launch on 7.7. to see if prices for new 6-core is same, or if 2600 drops in price.

TitianGerm

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor (£133.97 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI - B450 Gaming Plus ATX AM4 Motherboard (£79.98 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Patriot - Viper 4 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (£44.31 @ CCL Computers)
Storage: Kingston - A1000 480 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive (£64.22 @ CCL Computers)
Video Card: Asus - Radeon RX 570 4 GB ROG STRIX Video Card (£119.99)
Case: Zalman - S2 ATX Mid Tower Case (£43.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: be quiet! - System Power 9 600 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (£51.91 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £538.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-06-23 23:17 BST+0100

GPU @ Overclockers.

Wait another 2 weeks for Ryzen 3000 launch on 7.7. to see if prices for new 6-core is same, or if 2600 drops in price.

Just to note eBay have a 20% code off some items today and you can get the Powercooler Red Dragon RX570 for £119 as well. I think that one is considered to have better cooling?

Or you can get a bundled 2600x and Powercooler Red Dragon RX580 for £273. Which is only £20 more than the GPU/CPU linked if the OP wanted to stretch a little?

Frankie5Angels

Thanks guys, appreciate the replies.

I've been furiously searching the PCPartpickers site today and have a couple of questions resulting from it, if you wouldn't mind.

1. I 'upgraded' a couple of the parts suggested by KO above (i.e. Ryzen 5 2600x instead of 2600). I went for 16gb of Corsair RAM too. Taking those as an example, the price obviously went up (621 GBP), but when i switched from UK location to Ireland, it gave me alternative suppliers and the price seems to have gone down (615 euro). Is there preference for the British suppliers over those such as Komplett (who i have bought off before and found pretty good)?

2. Are the two parts listed above, which I've changed, compatible?

3. Is a case a case? i.e. if I went for something random like this would all fit?

Thanks again!

K.O.Kiki

I don't use the Irish PCPartPicker site as most of the vendors are considered not-trustworthy - Komplett.ie can be ok, I guess.
Yes, the 2600X & Corsair RAM are compatible - the 2600X even comes with a better CPU cooler so that's a nice bonus.

There are different case sizes (ATX, microATX, mini-ITX) and while yes, everything fits, cases can have wildly varying levels of build quality, acoustics, thermal performance, features etc.
However, nothing wrong with buying a case on looks/budget alone, just google for reviews before buying a lemon!

Frankie5Angels

Right, I think i'm almost there. I've used the UK site based on your advice too. I had upgraded the GPU from 4 to 8gb, but from a cursory search it seems it would be a foolish trade up/cost v what I will probably use the thing for. I can upgrade down the line if needed, I presume.

The differences to your original suggestions:

AMD - Ryzen 5 2600X 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor

Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory

Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (tbh i've only added this as i've seen it on other builds. i imagine i'll need the storage eventually, but external HDD always an option, obviously. Is this an unneccessary addition?

I've also added a copy of Win10 which has driven up the price a bit. Is there a way to get a version of it without breaking the bank? (or the law!)

If any of the above are blatantly foolish/needless additions, please feel free to say so.

TitianGerm

Frankie5Angels wrote: »

Right, I think i'm almost there. I've used the UK site based on your advice too. I had upgraded the GPU from 4 to 8gb, but from a cursory search it seems it would be a foolish trade up/cost v what I will probably use the thing for. I can upgrade down the line if needed, I presume.

The differences to your original suggestions:

AMD - Ryzen 5 2600X 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor

Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory

Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (tbh i've only added this as i've seen it on other builds. i imagine i'll need the storage eventually, but external HDD always an option, obviously. Is this an unneccessary addition?

I've also added a copy of Win10 which has driven up the price a bit. Is there a way to get a version of it without breaking the bank? (or the law!)

If any of the above are blatantly foolish/needless additions, please feel free to say so.

You can use W10 without activation for as long as you want. I did it for about 6 months.

Frankie5Angels

TitianGerm wrote: »

You can use W10 without activation for as long as you want. I did it for about 6 months.

Thanks TG. Another question on it: do I download it to an external device and plug and play when the build is complete?


I realise these are probably dunce questions

Frankie5Angels

Last question : Do I need a wireless card? It's not my intention that the unit be connected by ethernet, so not sure if that's built in or not?

TitianGerm

Frankie5Angels wrote: »

Thanks TG. Another question on it: do I download it to an external device and plug and play when the build is complete?


I realise these are probably dunce questions

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO

Go here and follow the instructions. Downloaded the install to a USB key.

Frankie5Angels

Thank you again TG, appreciate it.

TitianGerm

Frankie5Angels wrote: »

Thank you again TG, appreciate it.

Get yourself a set of Homeplugs if you can't plug directly into the router.

K.O.Kiki

2Tb drives are usually much cheaper per Gb than 1Tb (25p/Gb vs 34p/Gb) & perform much better, too.

Frankie5Angels

Ok, I’m in the middle of the build and trying to attach the cpu cooler fan. It seems to me to be way too far off the back board to situate it without it being really pushed down on top of the cpu itself. Any ideas?

CPU is Ryzen 2600x and motherboard is MSI B450 Gaming Plus.

At this point I think the thermal paste bit might be in a bit of bother as I’ve removed and reset the fan a few times.

jebidiah

Frankie5Angels wrote: »

Ok, I’m in the middle of the build and trying to attach the cpu cooler fan. It seems to me to be way too far off the back board to situate it without it being really pushed down on top of the cpu itself. Any ideas?

CPU is Ryzen 2600x and motherboard is MSI B450 Gaming Plus.

At this point I think the thermal paste bit might be in a bit of bother as I’ve removed and reset the fan a few times.

Not sure I get what you are trying to say.

It's too far off the motherboard, but you are concerned that it's sitting on top of the CPU?

There are instructions in the manual for the motherboard.

You will probably need to remove the black stand off bars on either side of the fan to install the 2600x cooler. That's the only thing I can think of that's making it too far off the mobo

Frankie5Angels

Sorry, last night's post was written in worry/frustration

I installed the CPU, then removed the two stand-off bars and set them to the side, along with the screws. When I went to screw in the cooler/fan, I used the method suggested in some of the build videos on youtube i.e. one corner, then the corner diagonally opposite. The videos make this look a simple task, like the screws just screw in easily. However, when I had one screw even a little bit in, the opposite corner would be raised, making it very difficult to screw that screw in without using a degree of force, which is not evident in the videos. I eventually got three screws in, but I'm worried I've placed too much pressure on the CPU by doing so.

Edit, please excuse the (extremely) crappy pics but hopefully this gives an idea of my concern.

1. With a bit of effort, get a screw in.



2. 'Lifts' the diagonally opposite screw.

jebidiah

Are you still having trouble? Maybe try a different corner first?

You might need to apply a small bit of pressure to get them to catch from looking at a Reddit thread. Just enough to make them catch. Should be fine just moderate force, not the whole body behind the driver!

Frankie5Angels

jebidiah wrote: »

Are you still having trouble?

I'm not sure! :pac:

I have the fan on now, it's not going anywhere, but I still would have a concern about the amount of pressure on the CPU and whether it's normal or not. It might well be an unfounded concern, as I'm new to this. Considering ploughing on and seeing what happens!

Thanks for your replies.

K.O.Kiki

Loosen all 4 screws completely.
Turn the cooler 90 degrees.
Then start screwing them in again, but ONLY by a half-turn each time.

Frankie5Angels

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

Loosen all 4 screws completely.
Turn the cooler 90 degrees.
Then start screwing them in again, but ONLY by a half-turn each time.

But if I turn the cooler 90 degrees, the screws won't align with where they're supposed to go?

K.O.Kiki

Frankie5Angels wrote: »

But if I turn the cooler 90 degrees, the screws won't align with where they're supposed to go?

It's not square? Thought it was, sorry.

Well, just try again I guess.
Or take it as a sign to upgrade - you can get Deepcool Gammax 400 for £20: :pac:

Frankie5Angels

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

It's not square? Thought it was, sorry.

Well, just try again I guess.
Or take it as a sign to upgrade - you can get Deepcool Gammax 400 for £20: :pac:

Nope, it's cylindrical, but the screws are in a rectangular position rather than a square one, if you understand.

Upgrade? I just bought!

Since it's screwed in now, I'll go with what I have and hope for the best, while maybe buying that one later in the week and replacing.

Thanks!

Francie Barrett

How is your build running?

I am thinking of getting virtually the same set up as what you have.

Frankie5Angels

It's not, yet! Still in the process of putting it together.

BloodBath

If anything it looks like it could be screwed in more. I'm pretty sure those springs should be fully compressed.

Is there a back plate for the screws on the bottom side of the motherboard? Do you have it the right way around?

Whatever you do, do not over tighten that cooler.

Frankie5Angels

BloodBath wrote: »

If anything it looks like it could be screwed in more. I'm pretty sure those springs should be fully compressed.

Is there a back plate for the screws on the bottom side of the motherboard? Do you have it the right way around?

It has been screwed in more since the snaps. The back plate is on the back, but with the screw receptacle only going one way, it doesn’t appear that I have any option for a mistake on that front.

BloodBath

Alright, just run some benchmarks and check your cpu temp. Not worth forcing screws if they are reasonably tight.

Frankie5Angels

Ok, I’m very nearly there! Thanks to everyone for their help so far, I really do appreciate it - would genuinely be screwed without ye! Hopefully just the one more question...

Everything seems to be working so far....except one thing. When I switch on, all fans go on, the motherboard lights up, the gpu fans go etc, but when I connect via a hdmi cable, nothing happens. The bios screen I expected doesn’t come up.

I have connected everything I can, as carefully as I can, and took care to follow the guide on the ‘Reset SW’, ‘Power SW’ etc area (I can’t for the life of me remember what it’s called, sorry).

For info, I’m connecting to a telly for the moment, rather than a monitor.

BloodBath

Are you using the HDMI from the graphics card? Not the one from the motherboard.

Frankie5Angels

Tried both, no joy!

Frankie5Angels

Typing now from the comfort of my living room couch!

Thanks to all who helped me, hope i wasn't too much of a pain in the hoop! :pac:

jebidiah

Frankie5Angels wrote: »

Typing now from the comfort of my living room couch!

Thanks to all who helped me, hope i wasn't too much of a pain in the hoop! :pac:

Did you find the fault?

Frankie5Angels

jebidiah wrote: »

Did you find the fault?

I'd like to say yes, but tbh I brought it into work to a guy that was advising me and it worked fine. So I downloaded windows, lashed in the flash drive and it's been fine ever since except one thing...

When installing win10, it gave me the option to put it on the HDD or the SSD, but since its been installed it hasn't recognised the HDD, or I can't see it anywhere. I'm not overly worried since it was recognised at install stage, it's obviously picked up somewhere - might spend a bit of time this week figuring it out.

K.O.Kiki

Is the size of your C:\ drive equal to the volume of both drives put together?

BloodBath

Is it a new HDD?

If so you just need to format it I'd imagine.

Windows search disk management and you should see it.

Right click on the hard drive from the list and click format. There's an option then for a quick/fast format. Use that with the default options. Should only take a few seconds then it will show up.

jebidiah

BloodBath wrote: »

Is it a new HDD?

If so you just need to format it I'd imagine.

Windows search disk management and you should see it.

Right click on the hard drive from the list and click format. There's an option then for a quick/fast format. Use that with the default options. Should only take a few seconds then it will show up.

This probably

Frankie5Angels

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

Is the size of your C:\ drive equal to the volume of both drives put together?

Nope, the SSD is 480, HDD is 1gb.

BloodBath wrote: »

Is it a new HDD?

If so you just need to format it I'd imagine.

Windows search disk management and you should see it.

Right click on the hard drive from the list and click format. There's an option then for a quick/fast format. Use that with the default options. Should only take a few seconds then it will show up.

I tried this, but the only option was to 'initialise' the disk. Did that, but it still doesn't seem to have registered. I'll sit down properly this evening or tomorrow evening and give it a good look.

I would like to keep the SSD as clean as possible but it is brilliant - this is my first experience of one and the speed at which everything happens is excellent.

My thanks again for the replies.

BloodBath

Yes sorry that is the option. It's been a while since I've done it. Formatting it should be part of the initialise option though.